The Oracle's Gift
by DestructoKat
Summary: Original continent with submitted characters! Haelin's a continent with a near forgotten history with the only real clue to the past being a toxic land called The Barren. Those who could see the future, the oracles, have warned against interacting with it at all but when it suddenly begins to look nice, one country isn't going to wait any longer.
1. Prologue

Haelin's history was nearly forgotten. It was never put to paper and only few remain who could recall it. For most, it was a history that was gone and seemingly didn't affect them, thus hardly anybody attempted to fill in the gaps. Those who tried gave up, realizing that all they had left betrayed no secrets and there didn't seem to be a way of finding more information. The only thing that remained of this lost history was a region called The Barren, appropriately named from the lack of any life that existed there. It was toxic – the waters were a strange grey purple colour, the air was unnaturally dark, ad not even grass dared to grow, producing a perfect ring of grass that marked the boundary between life and death. The country that shared a river with The Barren, Vedia, was forced to build a dam that prevent its toxic water from infecting their livelihood.

The whispers that there was more to The Barren than met the eye began with a woman who claimed to see the future. She appeared seemingly out of nowhere, with flowing red hair that reminded everybody she talked to of fire. She couldn't see the past but she surprised everybody when she called The Barren a barely tamed beast that sought freedom from its chains. She advise that nobody ever set foot on The Barren, not just because it was dangerous, but she claimed that it would help free the beast. She promised to lead an unimportant country called Adoss to prosperity, to finally gave Adoss its place among the countries of Haelin.

They built her a temple, where she stayed and lived for the rest of her life. When she died, they erected a statue of her and burned her body. She resembled the flames even in death, like they were reclaiming a long lost family member. She had no children but it only took ten years to find a child who had a knack for predicting things. He was pulled from his life in a noble family and he too began to live the rest of his life in the temple.

Even the second oracle, a man not unlike the first oracle in appearance, tensed around the idea of The Barren. Not unlike his predecessor he spoke of The Barren like it was a living being and instructed that nobody go beyond the edge of the grass. Upon hearing his words, the king at the time erected a long wall among the border of Adoss and The Barren but the rulers of the other countries refused to do anything similar even though they also shared borders with The Barren. Adoss was alone with their oracles, so while everybody agreed that The Barren was bad, they did not think anything ore of it.

Five years after the second oracle died, The Barren changed. Grass began to grow. The citizens of Vedia noticed that the river that flowed through The Barren was cleaner and contemplated on removing the dam. The air didn't seem as foul. The rulers got together to discuss the matter, though Adoss lacked their third oracle. Everybody agreed to wait for twenty years and see how The Barren progressed before they would even begin discussing how to divide up the land. The land may been cleaner but there were no animals and with the words of the previous oracles hanging over the King of Adoss' head, he refused to let anybody to go in without waiting first.

After all, the two oracles had nothing good to say about it. He used that to fact convince everybody to wait, even though he lacked an oracle at the time to show the rest of Haelin just why he placed so much trust in their words. The oracles were very good – it wasn't a case of simple fortune telling. Their ability, he believed, was real and Haelin needed to heed their warning and stay out.

Zahan, a country with two great mountains, wouldn't wait twenty years and Queen Asteria brought her army to The Barren, only allowing elven years to go by. She wanted more fertile land and she thought that Adoss' reservations with The Barren was absurd. If everybody else was going be cautious about it then they deserved to get nothing from The Barren. Her father may have agreed to it but Queen Asteria only saw the benefits and she didn't want to divide it – to cut it between five countries basically amounted to little land for everybody. They were going to race for it, but Queen Asteria was the only who was aware of the race.

The beast smirked but nobody saw. It may have taken centuries but freedom was insight. The chains were looser. The beast was aware and ready.


	2. The Future of Adoss

It wasn't a cozy home but it did well. That was Igneous tried to tell himself anyway – no matter what, the fact that he lived in a large addition built onto the temple was enough to immediately make his space feel void of any personality because it used the same grey stones. It wasn't homey. He had to his own touches to the room he called his bedroom, including a large bed full of pillows, a vanity with a mirror, and a red rug that sure felt expensive. Red was his favourite colour – it was the colour of his long hair, except his hair was orange at the tips, the colour of the baggy pants he wore, the colour of the flame-embroidered top with no sleeves, and the colour of the gems in his jewelry.

His entire life was revolved around fire and it made him feel powerful in a strange way, like he was the flame itself. Apparently, that was the way it was with the two oracles before him, or so he heard. Vulcan, judging by his statue, had short flaming hair, but the head priest in the temple was a caretaker of Vulcan and he described him as similar to Igneous. They shared the golden eyes, the red hair and the tan skin, traits seen in the first oracle, Mayon according the records that the temple kept of her. Her statue made her look tall and she was in a dancing pose.

Igneous was putting jewelry on when the head priest knocked on his door. "Igneous! Are you awake? The king sent a messenger and he wants to see you shortly."

"Got it!" he shouted back through the door and followed with a sigh. It wasn't that he hated King Jarid – the man was old but he was kind and pleasantly plump. He had short grey hair but he kept his face shaved and he seemed to always wear expensive looking robes. However Igneous never got along with Darren, his oldest child and heir to the throne. He must have been the spitting image of his father, just twenty years or so younger, with dazzling green eyes and long brown hair that he tied back. He was also a warrior by all appearance, donning the red and yellow trimmed armour of Adoss. Igneous tried his best be nice and calm around Darren but the other man was adamant that his abilities were nothing but glorified fortune telling that you get from the streets.

Jarid's daughter often came as well but she seemed to refuse to speak for the most part so Igneous didn't even really know her name. He had the idea that she thought the whole thing was dumb but she didn't say anything, just folded her arms in front of her chest and huff whenever Igneous said something she didn't like. He didn't know what he did to her. She looked a lot her brother, though her hair was tied into a bun and she had blue eyes instead of green. She also didn't seem to care much for fighting – there was no way one could fight with such a tight dress on.

Either way he got ready quickly and made his way to the front of the temple. The temple wasn't as nice looking as Igneous thought it could be. He thought that the light grey stone walls should be painted to look like fire, thought that the temple could use some more curtains others than the one the blocked the front of the temple from the living quarters in the back, and the centre of the room could use more than the red cushion he sat on while he glimpsed into somebody's future. The only things that the temple had for decorations were the statues of Mayon and Vulcan, set behind and side by side at the back wall. The two walls at the side also had some fancy torch holders.

It didn't take long for King Jarid to arrive. He waved to Igneous. "How are doing today, Igneous? I hope your caretakers are doing you well!"

"I'm doing fine," he answered with a smile as he held his hand up for Jarid. Igneous saw glimpses into the future, tiny ones usually, several times a day but they didn't seem to relate to anybody. However, it seemed that if he held somebody's hand, then he could clue in one the future of a specific person. It was why he didn't like handshakes – he didn't care to see everybody's future.

Jarid placed his hand down on his. _The first thing he saw was the king's dead body on his back, a gaping wound in his back. There were more bloody bodies, two which looked kind of like his children but they were faced down and the entire vision was dark so he couldn't make out as much detail as he would of have liked. The only clear thing was King Jarid's gaping wound. The second thing he saw was an alternate route but apparently, it ended in death all the same. King Jarid was face up, blood all over the front of his lonely body, the only thing keeping him any company being the sword in his hand. That image was considerably lighter than the other, like the sun was finally spilling into the room after a night of slaughter._ He let go of the hand.

"I usually don't describe what I see but this time I feel like if I don't, it'll be the downfall of Adoss. The important thing is that you're going to die," Igneous said clearly. "How you chose to die is what will help or hurt Adoss – when the time is right, and I believe you'll know when, you must choose to fight. Your children will be spared and they have the chance to redeem Adoss. If you try to flee, then Adoss has no future that I can see."

"So I'll die? How long do I have?"

"I can't answer that for you. I never know when these things are supposed to happen, just sometime in the future, you have a choice to make."

Darren growled, balling up his fists. He may have been mad but Igneous knew that Darren wouldn't lay a hand on him. "Wait, father, you can't possibly be taking this guy seriously! You're not going to die just because some androgynous freak said so!"

"Excuse me, I'm the best androgynous freak as you so kindly put it," Igneous growled. "I'm hardly ever wrong and while some futures can be changed, the vision I saw of King Jarid wasn't one of those that could be changed. The details of the bodies were both too clear for me to mistaken it for anything else. However, if you father doesn't heed my warning, it's all over for Adoss! You can make fun of me all you want but it changes nothing!"

Darren bit his lips and huffed.

"I trust him, Darren," Jarid said, placing a firm hand on his son's shoulder. "Igneous, thank you. I have one more question... I don't suppose you've seen The Barren in your visions?"

"Not that I know of..." He was sure that he would know if he saw it. At least he hoped he would know if he saw it – it was hard for him to say anything.

"You see, Queen Asteria of Zahan hasn't been queen for very long but I believe she may try something soon. Maybe it has something with what you saw for me today," he said with a sigh. "I barely managed to convince her father to wait and observe The Barren but now that we do have an oracle, maybe I can get you to have an audience with the other ruling kings and queens to reaffirm my points eleven years ago. The Zahan rulers are always tough to get along with."

It could be very well that Adoss' future was threatened because of Zahan's ambitions. He didn't see the killer so anything was possible. He doubted that visiting the other rulers would really change anything though – it would take too long to organize and the king may not even be alive for much longer.

"It might be too late for that father," Darren mumbled. "I don't think she would believe you and that's all assuming she hasn't left yet. I've been close enough to the borders to know that Zahan's eager to fight and they'll do it on a whim."

"I'll do it if you want but I think Darren knows what he's talking about. It might be too late to do anything if today's vision was of any indication. Like I said though, Adoss will survive if you don't turn your back on the enemy," Igneous said with a shrug. He hated being vague but the best he and anybody else could do was try to piece together what little clues they had and hope for the best. Sometimes it worked out and sometimes it didn't.

"So you're on my side now?" Darrn muttered as he folded his arms in front of his chest.

Igneous gritted his teeth. "I'm not here to pick sides! But maybe I should read you too."

"You have my permission," the king answered. Darren look flustered, embarrassed even, as Igneous grabbed his outstretched hands. _He saw two paths again. In the dark room, he could see the body of Darren, face up but his eyes were still open, like he never saw his death coming. Unlike his father though, he couldn't make out the wound that killed him and the vision was so blurry that he could barely tell it was Darren at all. That was a good sign – a blurry vision had the potential to change, in his experience at least. The other path presented seemed to be a literal path, one that was steep, narrow, and meandered frequently. A difficult path then? The path was so long that Igneous could not see the end of it but Darren, blurry like he was before, simply walked forward, cautiously putting one foot in front of the other._

"Well?" Darren asked impatiently. For somebody who seemed convinced that Igneous' ability was fake, he seemed awfully frightened of the end result.

"Two choices, like your father. Neither of them are easy – on one hand, you could die. I believe this has to do with your father's decision. If he fights, I believe you'll survive since I saw more than one body with your father's cowardly death. If you do survive, the path you have going forward is a difficult one – steep and not straight forward so you'll have to take your time to make it to the end," Igneous explained. Again, he didn't really like explaining his finishes so thoroughly if he could – he liked to leave a little bit of mystery, assuming it wasn't a life or death situation. He liked to prevent death if he could.

"What's at the end?" the prince asked, raising an eyebrow. Igneous heard his sister huff and she rolled her eyes.

"I couldn't see."

"Some help you are then!"

"Or maybe you can think about it a little." Igneous rolled his eyes. He had a feeling he was one of the only people allowed to get away with rolling his eyes at the prince. He didn't mind milking that fact for all it was worth. "What would you be after?"

"Can you read my daughter as well?"

He blinked at the request. It was the first time he actually read any of the children so he didn't expect to read them both in the same day. He held his hand out.

"Go on, Lauren," her father urged. She eyed his hand suspicious but eventually, she grabbed his hand. _Not unlike the two men in her life, one path showed him her dead body, laying on her side like she thrown there. Thankfully, the vision was blurry like her brother's body was. Her other option showed her in much simpler clothing, her face obscured and her hair tied back under some some sort of headdress. She reminded him of a common women, keeping her hair out of the way while she worked or ran errands._

"I don't quite understand it. What I first said to your brother still stands – if your father dies-"

"I get it. What else?" she barked.

"I don't know what it means. You were just wearing plain clothing." She didn't look impressed with his answer but he had no idea what it could mean.

"Thanks again, Igneous," King Jarid said with a nod. "If this is the last time we meet, I sincerely thank you for all the help you've been. I know this is a tough job but I'm sure you made Vulcan and Mayon proud. I also know you and Darren don't necessarily get along right now but I hope that when it counts, you two will pull through together. I wish you all the best. Goodbye, Igneous."

"Goodbye, King Jarid," Igneous said with a small bow for perhaps the last time.

Igneous watched them leave, then stood up from his cushion and padded his way back to his room and collapsed into his bed without bothering to remove any of his jewelry. It felt like it was pretty early in the morning, considering that Saikur had yet to get up. Saikur and Igneous both enjoyed their sleep though and if they had the chance, both of them would sleep well into the afternoon. He didn't see his other two guardians though who naturally seemed to raise with the sun so he had no idea how late or early it really was. Igneous pinched the bridge of his nose. He couldn't remember what woke him up. He didn't dream, at least not that he could remember.

The glimpses into the future was enough – if he had vivid dreams as well he would just let the fourth oracle deal with everything.

It was not only the lack of sleep that bothered him but for the first time, foretelling one's death actually bothered him. He did it several times before. The very first time he said what he saw out loud was when he was six and he was trying to play with the other children in the village – he stumbled around a lot because of the visions and it made him the butt of every joke – when he told one of the other kids that he would be an orphan. The adults thought that he was just being mean but six months later, the kid's home burned down with his parents inside. His first act as an oracle was predicting the death of two parents.

Igneous knew, despite what the priests and priestesses tried to conceal from him, that he was known as "The Oracle of Death" by the general population but somehow he was still worth visiting. He predicted somebody's death way more than the other oracles did and never bothered him much before. Death was just end and nothing more.

What was different with King Jarid then? Was the fact that he tried to be so strong but inevitably he would fall apart? Hearing about his own death more than once had to get him but he tried to pretend that it didn't worry him. Igneous didn't think he was ready for his death though – there seemed to be a lot that the king still wanted to accomplish. He was still trying to to help even though he knew his days were numbered. Or maybe it was his final words getting to him – after all, nobody really did end up thanking him and hardly anybody outside of his guardians complimented him. King Jarid said the words Igneous didn't want know he wanted to hear and suddenly, he didn't want the old man to go.

What was wrong with him?

But most importantly, why him?

* * *

 _Hi everybody! Admittedly, I probably should have waited until school was over to set this all up but I was so excited. I'm working on the next chapter already and I want to get that up soon.  
_

 _If you submitted characters through PMs, you should have heard back. If you didn't, just send me a message but don't resubmit your characters. If you submitted through a review, we'll take about that now!_

 _ **Whoaheavy** : Tahno is good to go!_

 _ **HexyWitch:** Charlie is accepted. However, is there an alternate spelling to Charlie, like Charli? I have another submitted character with a similar name so I'm trying to a find a way that won't be too confusing to refer to them both. I do have other ideas if you don't want to change from Charlie though!_

 _ **McHearth** : you know me so well! But I like to think I know a little about you too, so that's why I don't mind using Arum and Elli again so long as you update them a little to make them applicable to Haelin instead of Tellius. Or if you trust me, I'll do that myself since I have some ideas. Point is, I think it would be a fun little experiment to see how character interactions really shape a character - who knows how different the two Arums and Ellis will be at the end of my two stories when they essentially started the same way? That's the fun! _

_Characters are still open but as you may have guessed, time for Adossian characters are limited. There will be a few more chapters of Adoss, depending on how more characters I get from Adoss, but after that, Adossian characters will have to be wanderers. If you want to submit manaketes, do that soon as well since I'll probably only take a few more before I even that they won't be considered rare anymore._

 _If you need some ideas, you can PM me and I can tell you what kind of characters and what classes I need. If you have any questions about characters, then don't be scared to ask. This is my story and I'm totally willing to break Fire Emblem rules a little bit to have my fun._


	3. The Dancer in Dosia

When he woke up, he found himself confused, unable to remember just when he fell asleep at all. He also had quite the headache since he slept with a golden circlet pressed against his head the entire time. However, he managed to get up and stumbled into the main lobby of the temple. The doors were closed and locked, meaning that Igneous wasn't expected to read more people for the day. It also meant that it was only a few hours that passed since he read the royal family. His guardians noticed the closed doors and set themselves up in the lobby with cards and small piles of gold coins in between them. They were gambling inside of what Adoss considered to be divine space but he also knew that his friends, at least the ones actually doing the gambling, did it because they thought it was hilarious.

His friends all lived in the addition of the temple just as he did, along with some of the priests and priestesses that cared for the temple. Igneous understood from early on in his divine career that he was important to Adoss and he was important in how the temple operated. To help keep stress off of him, they charged people for a reading – those who thrived from Adoss' wealth were read and their gold went back into offering some wages for those who had a hard time keeping up, people who couldn't work other jobs for whatever reason. These jobs were usually offered in a building a short walk from the temple, a building Igneous could see if poked his head out the temple. The temple itself was just outside of the capital city.

It would fall apart for years if Igneous died. It took time for an oracle to be born and be old enough to really be useful as an oracle.

The guardians not only looked after him but also after the gold that accumulated before it could put back into circulation. One the guardians was a male ursurine that came from Vedia named Gerben. He stood at seven feet, with heavy stone gauntlets and greaves that Igneous couldn't lift. He had messy black hair, some of it pulled back into a short ponytail, and chocolate-brown eyes that shined with mischief. He came for a reading once and Igenous, being eleven or so at the time, immediately became attached and wouldn't let him leave. He ultimately decided to stay. Igneous looked over Gerben shoulder. He seemed to have a bad hand but Gerben smirked like he was going to win.

Saikur was merely watching and he was the guardian that followed Igneous from their home village, so Saikur was a childhood friend. Well, one of the one friends that Igneous grew up with. He had a shoulder length, wavy navy coloured hair and serious blue eyes. His clothing was usually plain, usually some dark coloured tunic with lighter pants and leather boots. He was a little short for a sixteen-year-old and he had a surprisingly small build for somebody who could wield an axe. Saikur had an older brother who essentially raised him but Igneous didn't really know the details. While Gerben was mischievous, Saikur was the self-proclaimed voice of reason but not even he could stop the gambling in the temple.

He seemed to be on the look-out for cheating, at least.

The last guardian was an older man who was in his mid-forties with greying brown hair and a beard. Leigh was trained as a knight, and generally wore the heavy red and yellow armour that represented Adoss. However, he was transferred to the temple by the king himself just about the time when Igneous moved in. Leigh was usually strict with training and rules but when the temple was closed, he let himself and everybody else relax. Despite Gerben being the literal bear, Leigh was usually called the bear, especially by Gerben himself. He would act like mother bear when he was strict and then like a teddy bear when the temple was closed.

"Which one of us has a chance, Iggy?" Gerben asked. Despite Igneous warning him several times, the ursurine insisted on using the stupid nickname.

"If I knew, I wouldn't tell you guys," he mumbled, sitting down opposite of Saikur.

"So why is the temple closed today?" Saikur asked.

"I had a private meeting with King Jarid and his kids earlier today," Igneous answered, playing with one of his bracelets. Leigh glanced at him.

"What's the news?"

"He's going to die," Igneous said frankly. It stilled bothered him and he caught the crack in his voice from the brief break in his composure. His guardians were silent until Leigh cleared his throat.

"How? What's going to happen?" he demanded.

"He'll get killed – he can be a coward or a martyr, his choice really. If he chooses to be the martyr, Adoss will bounce back. If he tries to run, then he's not the only who will die. I didn't see who his murderer was though."

"That's some crazy stuff," Gerben said with a shrug, throwing one of his gold coins into a pile in the middle. Leigh raised an eyebrow and did the same. "But hey, if it'll cheer you up, I heard that some dancers are coming near the temple tonight! Those girls usually have those piece of jewelry you like."

That they did. Igneous liked to watch dancers, he always did. It wasn't the just clothing or the girls themselves that he paid the most attention to but rather the jewelry that the dancers wore that moved to their beat and jingled whenever the dancers moved, almost like a song. Gerben watched because he enjoyed any type of activity that involved a lot of movements. He lacked the finesse to really dance himself, or so he claimed, so he could respect the people who could.

"That sounds nice," he said with a nod. "Are you two coming?"

"I'll think I'll visit my brother today. It's been a while," Saikur mumbled.

"I'll stay here. There needs to be a guardian here at all points of the day. Besides, most of the girls are too young," Leigh mumbled. In other words, Leigh didn't want to look like a creepy old man for watching younger girls in somewhat revealing clothing dance. That was a probably a good call.

"Then it's just you and me, Iggy!" he said, throwing his arms around Igneous. "It's been a while since you got some fresh air!"

"Gerben, you accidentally showed your hand," Saikur murmured. Gerben shrugged and threw his cards into the middle.

"Fine, I was probably going to fold soon anyway," he mumbled.

"It's fine, keep your gold," Leigh said with a shrug. Saikur shook his head.

"Gerben isn't going to learn to handle gold unless you take it away from him," Saikur mumbled.

Leigh seemed to consider Saikur's words for a moment, then with both of his hands pulled the middle pile towards his own pile.

"Oh come on!" Gerben groaned.

* * *

Gerben and Igneous went out later that night after they were served dinner. Saikur left earlier in the afternoon, saying he'll have dinner with his brother and his niece and nephew. Whenever Igneous went out, he had to wear a travelling cloak and braid his hair so it would actually stay under his hood. That way, he could pass through a crowd easily without people bothering him for a reading, though if he had Gerben beside him, people were quick to stay out of their path anyway. As far as Gerben knew, he was probably one of the only ursurines in Adoss, considering that most of them just stayed around Fraedia or Vedia because they preferred the woods and rivers.

It didn't take long for them to reach the entertainment troupe that was staying in the capital city, Dosia. It was a collection of carriages set back against the side of the roads of the city while the dancers and entertainers themselves occupied the city square, dancing to various songs done by instruments and voices. There was a carrying case for a stringed instrument open on the ground where gold coins were starting to collect as people leaned on the houses or from the windows to watch them. Igneous heard some cat calls but he ignored them.

However, one dancer in particular seemed to grab his attention. She wore a yellow shirt and black pants, both appearing to be a little translucent around her stomach and along most the length of her legs. She was lightly tanned, perhaps because she was outside more often, with long blonde hair that ended at her waist. For a moment, his eyes locked on green eyes. He felt close to her for some reason but he couldn't place why. It wasn't a physical attraction. _He could see them together, with fire burning around them. He realized that the building he thought would look better with some colour was surrounded by fire in a strange twist. It was the other buildings around the temple that were actually burning, making the air hot and making him feel claustrophobic with all the screaming and people running all around him. She grabbed his wrist and pulled him with her as she broke into a run._

He snapped out of it, blinking away the fire that threatened his livelihood. No matter how long his visions lasted, the real time that elapsed was only a few seconds. When he was walking and had a vision, he would only stumble a little from the sudden loss of reality. Gerben elbowed his side. He must have tried to be gentle but it hurt enough that Igneous doubled over in pain.

"Sorry, I was checking. You didn't say anything for a while," he whispered furiously.

"You wear stone gauntlets. You hurt," he grumbled with gritted teeth but the pain subsided relatively quickly. That didn't make it any less agonizing. He stole another glance at the dancer in yellow and black. He felt like their futures were connected somehow but he couldn't tell who was helping who or what her goals were.

"Yeah, sorry," he mumbled, then smirked. "Find one that you like?"

He pointed out the dancer. "I feel like she's important," he mumbled. "I just saw her... we were together for a time. And the temple..."

"Iggy," he said, gently shaking him. It was gentle – he didn't feel sick from it. "You're here to relax."

"How long are they going to be here for?"

"Three days, I heard. Tonight is the first." Igneous looked at the dancers again,the other dancers but a blur in comparison to the one he was focused on earlier. He had to talk to her before she left Dosia, at least to satisfy his own curiosity about her. He didn't need her hand to figure out that she was important somehow - the fire was clear and she was clear, so it was most likely inevitable. He watched silently until she finished her dance and approached one of those carriages, switching spots with somebody in a colourful costume, some sort of jester if he had to guess.

Igneous approached the caravan, startling Gerben and making him rush to rejoin his side. "Hey," Igneous called out. He got her attention. She turned around quickly, like she had something to hide.

"Who are you?" she asked quickly.

"I'm Igneous..." he answered. He wasn't sure if it was a good idea to tell her that he was the oracle. He wasn't sure how well people knew his name, just his looks most likely, so he wasn't sure how she would react. "What's keeping you here?"

She blinked – she likely had no idea what he was asking. He tried to to think again. What would put her with him but outside of the troupe? He didn't think she was still affiliated with it.

"Is there something important that you lost, something outside of this troupe?"

"I... yes but really, I don't want to be a bother. I'm fine!" she said with a blush. He reached out and grabbed her hand, earning him a weird look from Gerben. _He could see a reunion, his feet planted in soft grass. They were surrounded by dense trees and by people he couldn't recognize, aside from Mira and his guardians. Why he had so many people surrounding him was a mystery but he felt safe. What was clear in her future though was a reunion, a big, tight hug with somebody he couldn't really see._

He shook his head as her hand slipped out of his.

"Don't you want your future though?" Igneous said.

"Igneous, what do you see? Why are you so obsessed with her?" Her face turned red again. Gerben sometimes had a bad choice of words. Great, she must have thought he was some sort of stalker.

"She has a future and somehow, we're involved in it," he whispered to Gerben, then he faced the girl. "I'm not crazy, I promise! I'm the oracle and I saw your future and that's why I came here. I want to know how I can help. If I can, I want to."

"I can't leave until my debts are repaid," she said softly. "I promised. I want to keep that promise, even if I have a future elsewhere."

"What if we pay your debts?" Gerben asked.

"Well, maybe..." she mumbled, her eyes wide.

"Are you going to be here tomorrow?" Igneous asked. She nodded.

"Then I'll meet you tomorrow... or send someone else," he mumbled. "What was your name?"

"I'm Mira."

"Tomorrow then, Mira! Think about it!" Igneous said with a wave as he turned around and began heading back to the temple. Gerben was at his side quickly and patted his back.

"Are you happy you went?"

Igneous nodded. "We're going on an adventure... soon, maybe."

Gerben didn't say anything. That was fine – silence helped him think. King Jarid's death, a fire at the temple, a journey away from Adoss and Mira was somehow in the middle of all that... what did they have in common? There was something he was still missing and if he had that piece of the puzzle, he could figure just what was going on. Which one came first? Was there even a connection or were the events are separate from each other, the only connection being the fact all of it had yet to happen?

Sometimes, he hated his gift. He felt like he had the opportunity to really help people but all he was capable of sometimes were answers that were either vague and unhelpful or clear and horrible. He wanted to help, he wanted to feel good about his gift because he was stuck with it and he might as well turn it into a good thing. However, all the visions did for him was earn him the terrible nickname. He had big shoes to fill – the other oracles carried Adoss forward but he didn't feel like he was all that helpful.

Sometimes, he hated being in the same room as those statues because he felt like they were staring him down and judging him for his inability to accomplish what they did. He couldn't figure what made him so different if he had the same gift they did.

Gerben patted his shoulder again. "Quiet means upset," he mumbled.

"No, I'm fine!" he answered. "Do you think the priests would do that? Buy her out of her contract? I want to feel like I'm helping somebody."

"You don't ask for much – the occasional shiny thing but really... they owe you a lot more than that for the work you do. I know it strains you. Anybody could see that. We should make sure we're back before it gets too dark though. You know how nervous the priests get."

"Yeah..." he mumbled, surprised that his mental exhaustion ended up translating in his body language. "The bed sounds nice right about now."

"I'll talk to the head priest about buying the girl's contract while you get some rest."

* * *

It was late into the evening when the last person who requested a reading left. For the first time in a long time, he went through a day without seeing death. It was strange compared to the day before when he saw fire and death everywhere. He couldn't explain it. He expected more death if Adoss was in trouble and surely, without a king it would be. He was confused. Maybe he should stop thinking about it, considering that all it did was make his head hurt. His only job was to say what he saw.

Gerben approached him as soon as he went through the curtains into the living quarters. "The priests will let us do it if you want to go now. What do you want her to do though? Come here? You can't just buy her out of a contract and then expect her to be fine – she needs somewhere to go."

Right, he did not think that far ahead. What if she didn't want to go back to the temple at all? Maybe they could set up her in an inn? Of course, that was more gold they had to spend but that was assuming she would agree to go with them at all. She seemed unsure of herself.

"I guess we'll have to talk to her," he mumbled as he began to braid his hair loosely before he donned his travelling cloak and pulled up his hood. Gerben took his chance to grab the gold when he was doing his hair so by the time Igneous was done with his hair, Gerben was ready to go. It was darker that night than it was the previous night they went out but the capital was still alive with song and dance, the night lit up with torches. He saw Mira again and approached her when she was done dancing.

"You're back," she said with a smile.

"Have you thought about it?" Igneous asked.

"I have and I think I do want to go with you. You might have a hard time with my boss though," she said with a sigh.

"I can try," Gerben mumbled. Mira directed him to her caravan while she motioned for Igneous to follow her. She went into the direction of another caravan and hopped inside of it, emerging later with a sword on her lap as she sat on the edge of the caravan. He didn't imagine that such a gentle looking girl would carry a sword but thanks to the fact that he mostly stayed inside the temple, he didn't really see a lot of people out and about with their own concerns. He saw his guardians, the way they could wield weapons but outside of that his experience was little. She also had a travelling cloak set under the sword on her lap but she must have not had many possessions.

"Who are you looking for anyway?" Igneous asked. "When I saw your future yesterday, you were hugging somebody but I really couldn't see who."

Mira looked hesitant. "That was probably my brother," she answered. "Do you really plan on going to Fraedia?"

"I'm not sure, to be honest. I'm getting the feeling that Adoss won't be safe for me anymore and that I should leave but I don't have enough information to know why. I never do," he said with a sigh. Between the fire and the fact that the king was doomed to die, it didn't seem safe for anybody but just because he knew he had to leave didn't mean he knew when to leave. Was Fraedia dangerous though? Even if he wanted to go to Vedia, to avoid The Barren he would have to go through Fraedia to get there. He also had a bad feeling about Zahan – Darren said they were eager to fight and if they had a relatively new queen, then it was perhaps a good idea to avoid the country if he had the chance.

Suddenly, Gerben and an older woman appeared in front of them, her face serious. She seemed to be the type that couldn't tolerate stupidity and she also looked to be a dancer herself but rather than appearing to be on the timid side like Mira, she seemed proud of her dancer outfit. "Well, Mira, looks like you're free to go. It's a darn shame since you're so useful, but he paid twice the amount that you owed me. Where are you going now?"

"I want to find my brother," she answered with a determined look. "But thank you for giving me the chance, Lotte."

"Hmm, don't you dare get caught up slavery again or you may not ever get the chance," Lotte said, brushing back some of her black hair. "I was the one to give you the chance, so don't waste it."

"Shall we go now? We can probably fit you in at the temple," Gerben said.

"See you later, Lotte," Mira said as she hopped out, placing her sword on the ground as she threw on her travelling cloak. When she done with that, she strapped her sword on her back. Gerben gave her a strange look but nonetheless, the three of them headed back towards the temple. Mira seemed much more comfortable in the cloak, Igneous noted and he understood the feeling. It was a shield. Igneous could be alone in the cloak because nobody could recognize him so long as his hair stayed bundled and didn't peek out. He had a feeling that Mira was one of the dancers who really didn't like the dancer outfit and just felt better when she was more covered. She was also armed but Igneous had no idea just how well she could wield that thing.

Probably better than he could.

Gerben stopped suddenly, holding his head up higher in the air like he could smell something strange and he looke alarmed. He suddenly heard the sound of screaming, followed by people running past them like they were running for their lives. Igneous looked up to Gerben in alarm.

"I smell smoke. C'mon!" he said, running ahead. Igneous followed him, keeping a hand on his hood as he did so.

"What? Why towards the fire?" Mira asked in a shout, holding her hood down by holding it on the sides as she followed behind them.

"Igneous can't be alone for any reason!"

"So the fire is better?"

"It is until we know what caused it!"

It was just as Igneous saw. The buildings, the wooden houses, were all on fire and seemed to be going strong as people in the surrounding area fled. Gerben ran closer to the temple and Igneous followed him, Mira at his side. The temple itself seemed fine, maybe because the entirety of it was made of stone of some kind. Adoss spent a lot of time and money on the temple back in Mayon's day and the fact that it could stand on its own without wooden supports, as far as he knew, amazed him. It provided safety for the ones that fled into it but it wasn't a large temple so he doubted many could fit unless the addition was opened up to the public.

Many ran past them towards the square back in Dosia and many continued to run past him as he stared at the temple. Gerben was trying to assess the damage.

"We should probably try to find a way to stay out of the way," Mira mumbled. She grabbed his hand and they ran off the main path but tried to keep Gerben in their sights. He was in a frenzy though, moving around and around and it was hard for either one of them to keep track of him and watch where they were going at the same time. Gerben seemed oddly panicked and for a brief moment, Igneous wondered if maybe Gerben forgot him. In terms of being a good bodyguard, Gerben tried but sometimes, he forgot simple things, like making sure Igneous was always in his sight. Leigh and Saikur were definitely more careful about that than Gerben was.

There was suddenly a loud horse whinny. He looked back and found it wasn't any horse he recognized. His eyes fell on the black and icy blue colours of Zahan and for a moment, the horse rider noticed them, watching them carefully. Igneous bit his lips. Was it a good idea to try to run? The rider didn't seem interested in them. His stare lingered for a moment, a moment too long – he locked eyes with the rider and he raised his arm. Igneous realized in horror that he was recognized somehow. "After him!"

Mira gasped and they both turned to run with Mira holding onto his wrist. He was getting tired quickly, not used to so much running and if it wasn't for the chaos and sudden danger, he would have refused to run so much. His new found friend seemed to be keeping up better than he was – she had no choice but to be active and dance and it seemed to help her. Most of all, he cursed his damn ability because it was so vague and so random, it seemed hardly useful at all sometimes unless somebody could connect all of the dots. It would have been nice to know what started the fire – it would have nice to know that it was freaking Zahan that was behind the whole thing and that they were apparently looking for him. What use was it to know about the fire but be unable to prevent the fire?

But maybe the fire was meant to happen – oh yes, Igneous definitely believed in fate and destiny and other such concepts. He just had no other way of explaining why some futures were so definite and others were so wishy-washy that he couldn't really tell what was going on, none of it was clear or very decipherable. They could mean anything. The ones that were meant to be couldn't change as far as he knew, such as King Jarid's death and possibly the fire and that was why he knew of them but not how to change them. He could generally tell if it was definite depending on the clarity of the vision – if the details looked so lifelike that he felt like he could touch them, then it was a more definite future than one that looked blurred.

Igneous cried out as pain erupted in his ankle and it gave out from underneath. He felt more pain his somewhere on his left and more pain into his right shoulder. He couldn't see what caused the pain, just that it was so unbearable that he found that his vision had gone dark and he was suddenly out.

* * *

Mira gasped and turned around when she heard a thud on the ground, then felt a tug on her arm. Igneous was down, two arrows poking out his back and another near his ankle. The horse rider approached him, setting his bow across his back. He looked at her intently. "Scoot along now, Miss, we only need the oracle and we'll withdraw and get out of here."

She bit her lips. She didn't like to be angry at anybody but she couldn't fathom why somebody would set fires to capture one person. He didn't seem to care if he was destroying other people's lives – many seemed to survive the fire but they would surely have nothing left. Igneous may be the oracle, she was just taking his word for it because she was thankful to him, but he wasn't worth all the destruction she saw.

What could she do though? Igneous wasn't screaming so she assumed he lost consciousness, unable to get himself out of the situation. Mira slowly unsheathed her sword. She was still new at it but she got the grip down and some basic moves. She figured that thanks to dancing, she might be able to dodge – her brother mentioned before that a moving target can cause some trouble, so she hoped that it would work in her advantage. However, she wasn't feeling confident in her ability to try to fight him though.

"Oh really? What do you think you can do? You're inexperienced! I know fresh meat when I see it!" he said, quickly drawing his bow out again with one hand and grabbing an arrow from his quiver in the other hand. He might have been fast but there was no way he could have fired three so quickly that neither her or Igneous knew what happened. He had help. Maybe she was in over her head but Igneous promised her a future, one that sounded like involved her brother. She was not letting anybody take that chance away from her.

He fired the arrow but he seemed to intentionally miss her foot, probably just to scare her. However, before he could even touch another arrow, there was a loud, angry growl that made her jump out of her skin and drop her sword. A giant, black mass dashed beside her and jumped, colliding with the horse and the rider. The horse got up quickly and ran away, making Mira jumped out of the way before it could collide with her. When she had a moment to catch her breath, she saw Gerben shift back into his human form, holding the man by the neck.

"How many soldiers to have here?" he growled, bearing his teeth.

"There are many more! More than you know and more than I know! Adoss is already in Zahan's hands!"

"That's a lie!"

"Just wait until tomorrow and you'll see!"

Mira gasped in horror as Gerben squeezed his fist and she heard the distinct sound of bone snapping. He broke his neck with his fist.

"C'mon, we have to get Igneous help," the bear mumbled, bending down beside Igneous. "Healers don't need the entire arrow, right?"

"Yeah, just enough of the shaft to push it through," she answered as she watch Gerben snap steel arrows in half, leaving about half of the shaft left.

"I'm going to transform again. Can you get him on my back when I do?" he asked. She nodded and he shifted again, taking the form of a large, dark bear, the biggest she ever saw. He bent down, allowing Mira to take Igneous' arms and drag him onto the bear's back before joining him. She had no idea where he planned to go but she owned, so she was going to stay.

* * *

 _Here's the update, as promised! From here on out, expect updates to be more sporadic - those who followed me since Silver Memories, my other story, will know that it's a good month if I update more than once. Not going to lie. I also want to some time to make more of a back log since that helps me finish the story._

 _Also, if I have not yet replied to you, then shoot me another message._

 _And say hello to Mira, one of the characters I received! So far, she's the only one in the story, unless you count the mentions of her brother, but you'll see more characters in the next chapter._


	4. Recoveries

Arder watched quietly as the fire spread slowly from building to building while soldiers roamed the streets, pushing their way through the fleeing citizens. Zahan soldiers didn't seem to be actively pursuing anybody nor did they seem to really hurt anybody but it was a little concerning that there weren't a lot of soldiers on the Adoss side. He wondered briefly what it could mean. The other thought that enter his mind... if he fought off Zahan, then how much could he make?

His thoughts were interrupted when a man suddenly turned a corner, an axe in one hand and a bow and quiver strapped onto his back. Arder noted his squinted green eyes, a grey vest, boots, and dark short hair. "What are soldiers of Zahan doing in Adoss?" he asked. "Setting fires in Dosia is a pretty underhanded move."

"We don't know want to cause trouble but if you give us trouble while we look for the oracle, we have permission to attack."

"And you used a fire to do it? Where's the honour in that?"

"Personally, I don't care," the soldier answered. "If you're going to stand in our way, then fall to our blades."

The man waited as the soldier attacked, bringing up his axe to defend himself. With what sounded like a sigh to Arder, the man brought his axe into the side of the soldier who attacked. Then he turned to face Arder. "Well, what do you plan on doing? Are you going to fight for Adoss?"

"I suppose. I can't help but to wonder what's going on," Arder answered. He withdrew a brave sword, a sword he could use accurately enough to attack at least twice before any soldier could attack back, but usually, he didn't need two chances. He looked up, noticing the rain that began to fall. It was gentle at first, as gentle as rain could be for water that was falling out of the sky, but then it began to come down harder. Ah well, rain didn't bother him too much.

"Looks like Dosia will be alright after all," the man mumbled. "What's your name?"

"Arder," he answered, shifting his eyes towards the spear that somebody threw at him. Arder dodged expertly and ran forward, slashing at the soldier who threw the spear, ending his life quickly. He smirked.

"I'm Garath," he answered as he turned around. They must have had people coming up from behind them but one of them had to fight the ones in front of them so Arder didn't spare a glance back. Another spear came, going from behind him and hitting one of the soldiers on a horse, making the soldier fall off and hit the ground with aloud thud. They were allies then, or at least temporarily. He didn't focus on them and instead focused on cutting through the Zahan soldiers that dared to attack him. When he saw nothing but bodies in front of him, thanks to him and the three allies behind him, he began to walk away, heading towards the city to square looking back only once, locking eyes with the other axe user. He would worry about payment later, he was just curious to see the extent to which Zahan soldiers tried to invade. Besides, they said they were looking for the oracle, so it wasn't hard to figure out where he should go to get payment.

After all, who would pay for a job that was only half way done? Nobody would pay anybody if there were still Zahan soldiers crawling around. In that regard, he would not fail.

And besides, those soldiers just weren't a challenge, especially when teamed up with three other capable warriors. He shoved his wet hair back, enjoying the rain as he walked calmly to the centre of Dosia.

* * *

Saikur sighed. It was a long night and he had no sleep between the worry for his brother and his two children and the worry for Igneous. In some sort divine mercy, rain fell not too long after the attack, calming the raging fires before the fire could do more damage than it had the potential to, sparing his brother's home. In the morning of the disaster, Adoss was still strong, something that made Saikur smile a bit, despite his lack of sleep.

For one, while the citizens were upset about what happened, a lot of the debris was already cleared away. It took a full night of work for it be cleaned up but by the time the sun was up, new materials from the good parts of Dosia were gathered and being allocated. Already, people were keen on rebuilding, busying themselves with the planning and it all happened so fast. Gerben was the one to haul away most of the debris, then helped to bring materials in but he seemed almost haunted by the fact that Igneous was hurt. It wasn't like he was dead though – Igneous would get better. He supposed that maybe, Gerben wasn't too keen on failing.

Tiredly, Saikur moved away from his spot by the side of the temple to the front when Leigh came out to join him. "Saikur! There you are... Did you get any sleep?" Saikur wondered if he looked as bad as he felt.

He merely shook his head.

"Do you want to be the one to search for the two that helped to rebel Zahan off or do you want to stay here and find some rest?"

Right, there were two helpers but they didn't know much about them. One, he remembered, had eyes that Saikur could not forget – a strange aqua colour he never saw before, along with dark brown hair with white highlights. He was sure that if he ever saw that man again, he would recognize him. However, it was odd to Saikur that he disappeared so soon after, mentioning nothing about his name, like he was looking for something that couldn't wait and would disappear if he didn't leave.

The other man that helped was an axe user like Saikur but unlike Saikur, he looked more like an axe user than he did. At least, he had the right build for it. In terms of appearance, he didn't have distinct features like the swordsman did but Saikur could remember squinted green eyes and a vest of some sort. Also unlike the swordsman, the man seemed to act as though he owed something to the city and wanted to fight for it before mumbling something abut Zahan's lack of honour. Something caught his attention, similar to the guy, like he had something to check on and he ran off too, saying his name was Garath and they should meet again soon.

"Why are we looking for them?"

"The head priest wants us to prepare to leave for Vedia for Igneous' safety in the next couple of days. Clearly, Zahan wants him and it's our job to ensure that they won't get him."

"What's the point of leaving Adoss altogether though?"

"It's just the head priest's opinion that we should keep moving. We have to keep the temple safe until we leave."

"I... don't know if that's for the best. The people would need their oracle the most right now while they rebuild – all of the priests should know this! I also hate showing that we're afraid of Zahan when we're not. Overall, shouldn't we be asking what Igneous wants? What he thinks is best?"

"You know that he can't control what he sees!"

"Then that's all the more reason to wait, now isn't it? We should at least try to wait until he sees something," Saikur said with a sigh, suddenly feeling very tired. "Let's exercise caution. We fought off Zahan once, we can do it again and they also need time to recuperate just as we do."

Leigh sighed, pacing around while Saikur laid back against the temple as the silence set in. Fortunately, it didn't last long.

"I'll talk to the head priest and see how long his healer thinks he needs."

Saikur was too tried to even enjoy his small victory over Leigh and his rule abiding nature. He was around because he was told to be around. Surely, he held affection for Igneous and they were friends, but the way Saikur saw it, Leigh cared more about following orders than about Igneous himself. He resented Leigh a little bit for that. Saikur cared about Igneous so much and he couldn't understand why Leigh would still place rules and orders above Igneous. Sometimes, Igneous couldn't get everything he wanted but he was at least willing to compromise whereas it took Leigh a lot of convincing sometimes to even consider it.

"I'll go find those two men as well."

"Alright," Saikur mumbled, slowly pushing himself to his feet. It was almost like he was drunk, stumbling a little on his feet as he made his way into the temple. It was still open, despite the fact that Igneous was resting and not reading because the people needed help. Maybe he could sleep after he checked in with Igneous and saw how he was doing with his own eyes. He made his way past the people that were sitting in the temple eating and talking around sheets of paper before they headed back outside to work on the reconstruction, then slipped behind the curtain and found Igneous' room.

In there was a female with loose, purple hair and dark eyes, dressed in the white and red robes that all the priests and priestesses wore. "Oh, are you his friend?" she asked. "I'm his healer, Elena."

"Saikur," he mumbled. "Uh... how is he?" From what he could see, Igneous was on his stomach, his hair loose and clutching one of his many pillows.

"Tired. He keeps grumbling and I can't help to think it might be about The Barren. I don't believe he's aware that's he talking though. Do you mind watching him for a moment?" she asked as she stood up.

"Sure... but why?"

"Well, I want to see if anything he's saying matches up with what the other oracles said before him. Everything odd or serious about the oracles were written down by somebody," Elena said happily, like she was excited to get her hands on them.

"I didn't know records of that existed."

"Oh they do but they're not available to the public nor are they available to most of us healers here. Unfortunately, they don't help too much with history since it's all rather recent but they're a good comparison tool," she said with a shrug.

"And you have access to those?" Saikur raised an eyebrow as he took Igneous' chair.

"I never said that. If we are all held behind by a few stupid rules, we'll never learn anything. Anyway, I'll be back shortly!" she said, running out of his room. Saikur sighed, fought back a yawn, and straightened himself in the chair. Igneous looked to be at peace, his ankle wrapped up for some extra support, he figured. Suddenly, Igneous woke up, slowly stretching and propping himself up on his elbows.

"Eh? Saikur? What are you doing here?"

"I was just checking up on you," he answered.

"You look tired. Did you get any sleep?" Saikur shook his head at that.

"I'm damn exhausted too, not just from the lack of sleep but from the battle too. You should be happy to know that this part of Dosia is currently rebuilding itself already."

"Do you know how bad it was?" Igneous asked as he slowly sat up, his hair falling about him. Suddenly, he understood why some of the female priestesses stared a little too long at Igneous sometimes. He was very pretty.

"The fire was bad, made about fifteen homes or so uninhabitable and ruined some of the farm fields but that was it. No Adossian casualties, surprisingly. Zahan was only worried about us and you so they didn't attack any of the citizens and everybody got out of their homes," Saikur answered. He failed to mention the two helpers, whoever they were. If Leigh found them, then it was probably better for Igneous to meet them himself.

"Why was Zahan even here? Do you think they got to the king already?" Igneous mumbled as he shot out of bed suddenly. Saikur grabbed his wrist and gave a forceful yank, sending his friend reeling back. He was tired but he was still prepared for anything and could react surprisingly fast when he needed to, even if he couldn't get to the other side of Igneous' room without stumbling a little. Perhaps he could be an efficient drunk but that was something he didn't have the time or will to test.

"Where do you think you're going? You need rest!"

"I feel like I should read people," he mumbled. "I think it's important to try to figure out what's going on."

"What? No, relax! Or better yet, maybe read me," Saikur mumbled, holding out his hand. Igneous' golden eyes went wide.

"Really? You never let me read you before."

Well, yes, that was true. Saikur wanted his personal thoughts to stay personal and there was no telling what Igneous could see in the future which may give him a clue into this thoughts. However, he also thought that maybe reading him and maybe Elena whenever she got back, they could find out more about when to leave. He wanted to know if he was right in making Leigh hold back and wait – it was just what he thought was best but if he was wrong, it could be very bad for Igneous. He was hurt once, Saikur didn't want him to be hurt again.

"I know but..." Igneous grabbed his hand. He didn't know what to expect – he watched him more than once but he didn't know if there was something to feel or something he should expect. Igneous let go. "I don't sense any sort danger. What were you looking for?"

"Leigh said that the head priest wants us out soon and he wants us to prepare but I didn't agree with that and if that was a stupid decision, then I want to know."

"I'm not ready to leave yet," he said quietly. He noticed that Igneous failed to tell him what he saw, just that there was no danger. "I want to see that everybody is alright first, I want to see the new houses go up again... I want to see that everything is normal again. I don't want this to be all my fault."

"But it isn't..."

"But I'm the 'Oracle of Death', Saikur! I'm not nearly as helpful as the other oracles were and it sucks! I couldn't prevent the fire, heck I didn't even tell anybody that I saw it... where's Mira? Is she alright?"

"Igneous, calm down! I don't who Mira is but she's probably just helping around where she's needed, Gerben's hauling stuff and Leigh's looking for two guys that helped us last night. Everybody's fine. You're the only one who got seriously injured so just relax for a while!" He mumbled, pushing Igneous into his bed just as Elena returned to the room, holding a thick stack of papers in her hands as she used her foot to shut the door behind her.

"Oh, you're awake," she mumbled as she put the papers down on Igneous' vanity. "Are you in any pain? You were grumbling."

"I was?" Igneous mumbled, looking bewildered but then he seemed to realize that she asked something else. "Oh, my chest is a little sore."

She raised an eyebrow. "Where on your chest?" He gestured to the region just under his neck but still in the middle, right in between his collar bones. She slowly raised her hand and gently touched him, her face perplexed. "There doesn't seem to be anything wrong."

"Huh... it's not really that painful, but it's like a dull throbbing."

She glanced back at the papers and dug through them quickly. "Apparently, that was never observed in the other oracles. In fact, Igneous doesn't seem to be much like the other oracles – they had little problems, even after their words about The Barren. They've lived rather happily until their deaths before the age of fifty. However, these records indicate that Igneous fell ill more often, particularly with fever, he favours some material goods when the other oracles showed no such interest, and he's predicted death more often than the other two. The only thing to change is the state of The Barren so there might be a relationship here."

"So... is his difference a good thing or a bad thing?" Saikur asked. Was his friend also doomed to die relatively young?

"Who knows? Is it possible that The Barren only grows stronger while the oracle grows weaker? Completely!" Elena said excitedly. Igneous collapsed into his bed with a groan, obviously not pleased with the news. Yes, being compared to Mayon and Vulcan was definitely what Igneous needed the most at the moment. "I don't think there's much I can do about his chest but if it still bothers you, I can find a herb that may help ease the pain."

"It's not that bad," Igneous mumbled into one of his pillows, the same one he was clutching before.

Elena nodded to Igneous and then turned to Saikur. "Were you one of the ones who spent time outside yesterday when it rained a lot?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Aside from your obvious exhaustion, do you feel any different? Being wet like that is bad for your health," she stated.

"No, I'm fine," he mumbled. Sure, he trembled a bit but it was hard to tell which problems came from being wet and which problems came from the lack of sleep.

"Igneous, if you wait here then I'll use a sleep staff on your friend. That should help him sleep."

"Yeah, I'll stay here. Saikur deserves some sleep," he said happily with a wave of his hand. Elena disappeared for a moment and came back with a staff that was not horribly unfamiliar with him. He led her to the room next to Igneous', which had just the essentials – a bed, a place to store clothing, a desk, and an extra chair – and climbed up onto his bed. The last thing he remembered from Elena was her chanting before he was out.

* * *

He didn't dream often but when he did, it was more like unpleasant recollections – he was often missing the imaginative side of dreaming that other people seemed to have. He chalked it up to a complicated childhood that for the most part, lacked any sort of fun. The only times he could really recall fun was using the axe and time spent being alone with Igneous, as they both found themselves as social outcasts and that wasn't just limited to children. Adults thought that Igneous was just a dumb, clumsy kid because he did stumble and space out sometimes but that was later revealed to everybody else that it was his gift that made him do that. Saikur's persecution had everything to do with his ridiculous family life and everybody knew it and called him out on it like he could do something about it.

He often recalled his mother in his dreams and he didn't care if she died during the time that he and Sarrel, his older brother, spent away from her. She didn't seem to have the ability to care for anybody but herself and she didn't even care for the home she lived in, leaving Sarrel and Saikur to do all of the cleaning, the cooking, and any other errand that needed to be done. He rarely saw his mother and when he did, she was with a new man he never saw before. In fact, he was pretty sure that he and Sarrel didn't have the same father.

Saikur changed his clothing, then went out in the lobby, feeling a lot better than he did before he slept. The lobby was busy again, filled with people that were resting, others that were circled around a piece of paper, continuing with their planning process where the wind could not bother their paper. Igneous went from person to person, holding his hand out and probably doing free readings. He looked a lot better, with normal colouring and the life that he had in his eyes and body motions replaced the confusion and the exhaustion he had before. Saikur smiled – it was good that they were better.

Igneous noticed him. "Saikur! How are you feeling?" he said, getting up from a kneeling position and running over.

"Better," he answered as he took a peek outside. The pile of materials had grown larger but nothing went up quite yet. That must have been what those in the lobby was planning. Dosia, he noticed, looked a lot better too. The sun was shining and with the debris cleared, it looked like nothing really happened. It was impressive really, how a city could bounce back the way it did but it was probably thanks to all the wealth Adoss accumulated, especially all the wealth that was accumulated thanks to the oracles. That gold alone could probably rebuild the section of Dosia that was affected.

Or rather, that was probably how it was. There was no world from the capital that he heard.

But then he realized that the sun wasn't any higher than it was when he fell asleep it was a little lower actually. He bit his lips. "Hey Igneous, how long have I been asleep for?"

"Oh, you were asleep the entire day. It's been two days since the fire."

"Why didn't you wake me up?" Saikur cried.

"We tried," Igneous said with a frown. "Elena said you shouldn't haven been out that long but because you were so tired to begin with, the sleep staff exasperated what sleep you should have gotten... or something like that! She was going to use another staff to wake you up but I thought you need the sleep."

Saikur mumbled. "Wow, I must have... did I miss any news?"

"Not really and Gerben's been on edge because Mira said that the guy that hurt me said that they would know something yesterday. Nothing happened as far as I heard and nobody here knows what's going on... speaking of which, do you know Leigh went? He hasn't come back."

"He went to go find some people who helped out. Like I said yesterday, the head priest thinks we gotta move and I guess us three guardians aren't enough to defend you," Saikur mumbled.

"Mira's coming too, whenever we head out. Maybe Elena should come, we do need a healer to make sure we get there in one piece."

"Who is Mira again?"

Igneous led him outside and pointed her out – a girl with long blonde hair and green eyes, her expression soft as she danced with a group of children who were more than likely displaced due to the fire. It was a good thing somebody was making sure that the children were busy – they would get in the way otherwise. However, there was another girl there, her hair long and white. Her most startling future were her red eyes, a sort of red that was dark and dull and not at all like Igneous' wild hair. Her dress was white and simple but she had a fancy gold and white corset over it to make up for the simplicity of her dress. She was kneeling beside the children as well, either talking or maybe singing to the children, making them clap for one reason or another.

"I don't know who the other girl is though," Igneous mumbled.

"I was about to ask."

"I know," Igneous said with a cheeky grin. "This is another interesting day with the readings though. You would think that with a fire and the death of a king that may or may not have happened yet, you think that people would be in more trouble but... that's not the case. No deaths again for the second time in a row! If Zahan is really going to invade, they're being relatively nice and I don't know if that's concerning or not."

Igneous suddenly stumbled forward. Saikur caught him before he could hit the ground, just in case he wasn't back in time to stop himself – it did happen where he hit the ground but it was a rare occurrence. Nonetheless, Saikur liked to catch him when he could, just to make sure. A second later, he recovered and Saikur let him go so he could could regain what Igneous referred to as the 'sense of self'. His friend rubbed his temples irritably as soon as he his feet planted firmly on the ground.

"What was it this time?" Saikur asked, raising an eyebrow. That was not a normal reaction.

"I... what was that...?"

Saikur felt alarmed but he kept it out of his expression.

"It was like... like an ursurine but it was like a purple fog too. It was the shape of a bear but there was no substance..."

"And what was it doing?"

"Nothing," he answered. "I just saw it but it looked right at me and I felt kind of... compelled to go to it. It was somehow calling for me, without saying anything, but it was also so full hate that I didn't want to go."

Saikur didn't know what to say. He couldn't calm Igneous down when in reality, he was startled and afraid for him too. His vision could be a metaphor for something but on the other hand, it could be very real and the fact that sometimes it was hard to tell was concerning. "Was it close?"

"It felt very far away... didn't like like any sort of place really so it should be far off in the future," he said quietly and subdued. "I don't like it."

"I don't blame you."

"Let's go talk to Mira and see who the girl is," Igneous said suddenly, changing the topic abruptly. Saikur nodded, only because he suddenly perked up and if indulging in curiosity made him happy, who was Saikur to argue? Igneous ran down the hill and Saikur followed with renewed energy thanks to his long nap but he also realized that it was a long time since he last ate and his energy only came from his excitement of well, feeling awake. He slept and it was amazing.

"Mira!" Igneous shouted with a wave.

"Igneous, hello," she greeted with a smile. "These kids are so cute! It's a shame what happened... I guess you're feeling better though."

Saikur turned to look at the other girl among the children. He felt a mysterious and powerful air around her that somehow put him on edge. There was something off about her.

"Who is your friend?" Igneous asked. He didn't look or sound like he felt what Saikur felt but he had the idea that Igneous did feel it. It wasn't something that he would miss.

"I'm Reina," she answered, her voice surprisingly kind. It was a voice he would have expected if he heard her before he felt that kind of air she had.

"We worked together briefly," Mira chimed in. "I danced but Reina sang until she decided to leave the troupe before we entered Dosia... for some reason." She shrugged.

"I have personal reasons," Reina said softly. "But I did hear what happened and... I wanted to help in some way, even if that something is just keeping the children calm. It has to be scary for them too." A little girl then walked up her and tangled herself in Reina's arms and her chest. Reina patted her head in a soothing manner.

Igneous smiled, then patted Saikur on the shoulder. "Okay you two, I get to introduce my friend now too. This is Saikur!"

"Is he a guardian too? Like Gerben?" Mira asked. Saikur nodded.

"And if Leigh ever comes back, you'll meet the third guardian," Saikur with a sigh. How hard was it to find two people who were essentially right in the middle of the action? Why the heck was it so hard? And why did they have to go away right away and leave Leigh and Saikur nothing to find them with? Perhaps they would come back to the temple? At least that Garath guy made it sound like he was going to come back but then again where was he?

He just hoped that Leigh returned soon, with or without the two strangers.

"Anyway, Igneous, I'm going to go find something to eat. I'm starving," he mumbled, making his way back to the temple.

* * *

 _This is a little shorter than what I usually allow but I wanted to submit another chapter to calm my nervous and this story was giving me a better time than the other. I think I wrote this in two or three days? Ah, the wonders of being at the beginning of the story versus being near the end._

 _Arder, Elena, Reina, and Garath are all submitted characters. Remember, it's not too late to submit a character from Adoss - becuase we're not done with it yet - otherwise you'll have to have an Adossian wanderer.  
_

 _And I hope this one is calm enough for you guys after the last one - and not sarcastically. I know last chapter escalated quickly but I also had a hard time planning for more relaxing points prior to the other action. I think I'm better with calming aftermaths, at least that's what I look forward to, so sorry for the rush on the last chapter! Also, fire is a theme of some sorts so I thought it fitting for it to cause some chaos. Even the other oracles' names were carefully picked - Mayon is the name of a volcano that holds the title of 'the World's Most Perfectly Shaped Volcano' and Vulcan is the Roman god of fire and metalworking. Igneous' names also involves fire/molten material. I like to find meanings with names and then I make names like Saikur.  
_


	5. To Be Lonely

Igneous was in his bedroom, taking a nap out of boredom more than anything else, when he was shaken awake by Leigh. Clutching one of his many pillow, Igneous let out a yawn but he decided to stay in the safety and warmth of his blankets. He glared at Leigh. "What took you so long?" he asked quietly and calmly, despite his feelings. In truth, he was worried and exasperated, even though he didn't see anything from his gift that would warrant worry but he couldn't help it. It was just unusual for Leigh to disappear like that and not send any word back. The fact alone was enough for Igneous to be a little concerned that something went wrong.

"I was busy," he said simply. "I know I may have worried you but I've gone to seek the two individuals that helped us out when Zahan attacked. I also had a print shop make some posters to recruit more soldiers, if there are any willing to come. We should try to recruit help before entering dangerous territory. Whenever you're ready, we do need to leave."

"I know," Igneous mumbled, his grip on his pillow tightening. "It would have been nice if you told me that you had plans like that. I hate that you never come to me with your plans when your plans involve me. I shouldn't be the last to find out when it's about my well being and safety."

Leigh offered a sympathetic smile. "I understand. I will keep that in mind for next time," he said softly. "Now, get out of bed. I didn't come home empty handed. I want you to meet some people."

Igneous slowly moved out of bed, throwing on his favourite jewelry; bracelets embedded with red gems, a necklace that hung low and wrapped around his neck several times to make it look as though he was wearing several necklaces, and a circlet with small red ornaments hanging off it. When he was pleased with his appearance, he followed Leigh out the lobby that was relatively empty. He could see rain outside but despite it, people covered themselves the best they could and were outside working on the frames for a home already. He didn't know where the others were being held for the time being but Mira and Reina were there again, trying to keep the children from being too hyper.

It was impressive how fast determined people could make something happen. An attack from Zahan did not seem to harm their morale, even though it hurt Igneous' morale and made him rethink what the meaning of his gift was. He supposed that the people were so satisfied with their life in Dosia that they would not allow anybody to take it away from them. It must have helped that nobody died and there were no serious injuries aside from the ones Igneous ended up with. The citizens, in the end, seemed to have taken the attack as a challenge.

But Igneous had a feeling that the rug would be pulled out from under their feet so fast that those citizens who see it as a challenge may not notice that anything happened. There had to be a reason that one of Princess Lauren's futures held one free of extravagant clothing, a reason for Prince Darren's long winding path in life, and a reason that through it all, Igneous didn't see any death. Somehow, the monarchy would be replaced but everybody else would be alright. Maybe... the citizens would just be too defeated to truly fight back?

Near the door, which was open but not a lot of rain actually made inside the temple, Igneous saw just who Leigh wanted him to meet. Two men, one with brown hair that had white highlights and aqua colourd eyes. The other man was clearly older and seemed to have more experience man with dark hair and squinted eyes. Leigh indicated at the former.

"This is Arder. The older one is Garath," Leigh mumbled. Garath held out his hand but Igneous just held up his hands in front of him. "Don't be offended, he's the oracle so he doesn't like to touch because he will see your future with a handshake."

"Ah, none taken," Garath said with a sympathetic smile.

Leigh cleared his throat. "I notice we have some new guests here."

"Reina, Mira!" Igneous called suddenly, waving the two girls over. Reina picked up a child who seem particularly clingy and made her way over. "This is Leigh, the last of my guardians you guys haven't met. Leigh, Reina is the one holding the kid and Mira's the one in the dancer clothing."

"Are these girls going travelling with us too?" Leigh asked.

"I will be. I... will find my family," Mira said quietly but calmly, her voice full of determination.

Reina hesitated for a moment before offering a small smile, one that looked a little sad to Igneous but he truly didn't know her. She was pretty and kind but somehow, she was more than she appeared to be. It was a combination of that mysterious air, not one that was bad but one that was more aloof, and the wisdom he just noticed in her eyes. "I want to help in whatever way I can."

"It's settled then. We're all going... but this still doesn't quite explain why you were gone for so long," Igneous mumbled. "You worried me. The last few days..." He left that thought alone, even though sitting alone in his own thoughts was what was hurting him the most. He liked Elena, Reina was very kind and helpful, and he loved watching Mira but whenever he was alone, that was when his thoughts trailed backed to the topic of his gift. He was the only Oracle of Death. Mayon and Vulcan were both spared that title but he was not so lucky.

"That might of have been me," Arder said with a small shrug. "I wanted to see the full extent of Zahan's presence here. Lucky for us, they all seem relatively inexperienced and they seem to lack any sort of central command. I'm not sure what you guys plan on doing but we should probably do it soon before Zahan can send good reinforcements. They only need a good commander to rally them into trying harder."

"I agree," Saikur said suddenly, appearing from behind. "But that's a conversation for later when we have everybody we plan on is here. Did you see anything else? Something that may help determine what they were thinking? Or do you think that sent out a low-level commander, who probably died at Gerben's hand, and used fire to try and lure Igneous out of the temple? Or maybe they were just mean and wanted to set Dosia on fire? I thought Zahan's attempt at war would be a bit more than half-assed."

"That might sound about right, on both guesses," Garath muttered. "I guess they underestimated us and just sent all the new guys."

"They were pretty weak," Leigh agreed. "I bet they had a mission that would be nice if they accomplished it, but perhaps Zahan was just measuring us."

"The ones we got were a bit tougher than 'weak'," Mira said. "If Gerben didn't come, I'm not sure how much of a chance I stood. I'm still rather new with the sword."

Igneous was about to respond when he spaced out, his vision filled with a vision of water. _It was a large body of water that was indoors, with a beautiful woman resting at the edge of it while still being submerged in the water. Her hair was long, blue and wavy and lighter at the ends. She was still clothed, with a blue cropped top that went up to her neck and had a keyhole in the front. She had matching shorts. She smirked, and gestured towards him, inviting him to come inside. The thing that got him though was that she was clearly a manakete._ Igneous shook his head. He felt like he had to meet her, it was a sharp sting in his chest.

"Igneous? See something else?" Leigh asked. "You zoned out."

"A manakete and water..." he mumbled.

"There's a rumour in Vedia," Reina started as she let the child in her arms down. She whispered into the girl's ear and gestured towards the other kids. When the kid ran off, she continued. "They say that the royal family is guarded by a sea serpent. I always figured that the sea serpent might just be a unique looking manakete. Maybe... that is who you saw. A manakete in water matches the rumours."

"Yeah, I remember hearing about the serpent when I was there. Merchants around ships sometimes say that they saw it in the water too, whenever Queen Raila was out there," Garath mumbled. "Do you travel around too, Reina?"

She merely nodded.

Arder glanced away for a moment, then took a deep breath. "Is that information reliable? Not the rumour," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "But what Igneous saw or whatever that was."

"It depends," Igneous said. "Just because I see something doesn't mean there's a guarantee that it will happen. The future can be changed but sometimes, things are up to fate and in that case, it cannot be changed. At least, that's the best explanation I can come up with. Sometimes, there are clues that something is fate or if it's something that can be changed but in this case, I feel like I should go meet her. It's a strong feeling."

"I think we can trust his abilities. It's not like I told him I was separated from somebody but he still got it. It just... felt personal," Mira stated. "Are you a skeptic?"

"I... I didn't say it it was impossible! I was just, uh, curious," Arder mumbled. "That's all."

"It's fine, I'm not offended by skeptics," Igneous muttered. He could understand why people would doubt his abilities. He didn't even know how it worked and why he was the only one with the visions of the future. If he wasn't living it, he may even doubt it. He was only truly offended when people were rude about it and he didn't think Arder was trying to be mean or even was mean. Arder just didn't spend enough time around him for Igneous to really display his ability. Garath though, didn't question anything. He just seemed satisfied with the answers he got.

"Anyway, we should probably wait until Gerben is done for the night before we make any more plans though, and maybe ask Elena if she wants to come," Saikur mumbled.

"Elena?" Leigh asked.

"She's one of the priestesses here. She took care of Igneous and has an idea of what happened with the other oracles before him, so she might come in handy in figuring this whole thing out. Besides, she's a healer and she doesn't have that longing look when she looks at Igneous like some of the other priestesses do," Saikur responded curtly, wrapping one arm around Igneous' shoulders defensively. Igneous liked Saikur but that was a little too close for comfort – he was not used to being touched in such a manner, so he shrugged his friend with his shoulders off and Saikur was quick to let him go.

"I see your point," Leigh said with a nod.

"Well, you guys figure this out, I'm going back to my nap," Igneous mumbled. It wasn't so much that he was tired, but rather he was bored and didn't mind the extra sleep. It was a way of passing time. Usually, he wasn't so bored because he would read futures for so long that it really did occupy most his day but since Dosia was in a state of rebuilding, the readings were more less done for now. He also didn't mind if he wasn't included when others figured out who they should bring along because he wasn't the type to really disagree with people. Some people disagreed with him and that was inevitable but for the most part, he didn't have trouble getting along with people.

They could bring whoever they wished. He didn't want to leave, at least not because of Zahan, but he did want to see who that manakete was. Maybe a manakete could help him figure out why he was the one who ended up being the oracle. He understood his guardian's worries but he had his own reason for leaving too.

Igneous didn't wait for anybody to respond and padded his way back to his room. He remembered to take his jewelry off and gently put them away. He hated it when the necklaces became tangled and the jewelry just wouldn't last as long if he didn't treat them well. He took off his shirt and slipped into bed.

* * *

He was waken up for dinner, so he put a shirt on and moved into the common area. This common area existed on the first floor in the addition and was accessed through two doors on either side. The addition was setup like a rectangle, with the bedrooms and washing areas along the edges and the common areas in the middle, with the floor plan being identical on the first two floors, except the common room on the second floor acted more as a storage room, and the third floor had no rooms, just a library that held records and books. The history books were limited in a way, describing only previous kings and the brief history that Haelin had.

Igneous only really took a peek at the spines of the books, he never did read them. He saw, aside the small number of history books, books on plants, animals, anatomy, medicine herbs, memoirs, books about research, and many books of legends, myths, and fairy tales. He figured they must have some truth to them, otherwise, where would he fit in all of it? He could not dismiss a fairy tale with his abilities.

He joined everybody in the mess. He liked to sit by the ovens because it was warm there. Saikur often joined him there, opening his tunic a bit whenever he did because he seemed to get warmer faster than Igneous did. He also, for the first time in what felt like a long time finally saw Gerben, sitting across from him. He was always careful to make sure that his stone gauntlets didn't put too much weight on the table since the priests were worried about it.

"So what's the plan? I'm sure you guys have been thinking of something," Gerben mumbled. Igneous was going to answer when he was forced out of the conversation due to another glimpse. _He could clearly see the full moon from a broken window. He could make details on the curtains that billowed out around it and he could even make out a figure, who seemed very tall for what he assumed to be a human. The figure, Igneous decided, was definitely a male and he could make out the icy blue fabric under his armour, indicating him as a man of Zahan. There was dark hair that seemed to be slicked back._

 _There was another man that he recognized as King Jarid, laying on the ground with a sword up to defend himself. The man, with hard brown eyes, lifted the lance and stabbed into the king._

Igneous gasped when he regained himself. He felt his blood rush and his heart beat into his ears. He had to breathe deeply until he could calm himself.

"Iggy...?" Gerben asked cautiously, his eyebrow cocked in concern. "You usually don't react like that," he mumbled, focusing his attention back down to his plate of food, fish that was fished out from the oceans of Adoss. Gerben was fond of fish but he stated before that what he got just wasn't as good as the kind he could catch in Vedia. It was served along side some fruits and vegetables.

"King Jarid's death..."

"But didn't you already see that?" Saikur asked.

"Not how it happened, just that it did... full moon, that's when it will happen," Igneous muttered quietly.

"There's like... three days until the full moon? Obviously I'm not great with numbers but I'm close," Gerben answered.

"Where's Leigh? And the others?"

"Right here," Mira said as she gracefully moved to sit down at the table. "Everybody else will be down shortly. Leigh was just outside testing Arder and Garath again and I think Reina and Elena are talking about something. Why? What did I miss?"

"We should wait for everybody to get here," Gerben mumbled as he bit into his fish. His face was serious.

It didn't take long for the mess to fill up with Igneous' new friends and allies. They were mostly alone from those who worked there, with the exception of Elena but Igneous thought her less as one of the priestesses and more of a friend. He wasn't exactly sure when that shift happened but when he had a name and a face, the person meant more to him. He was usually closer to those people, except King Jarid's children stood out in his mind as exceptions. Igneous repeated what he saw and Leigh frowned.

"Does that mean there's a chance to save him? Leigh said that you saw him die before," Arder asked, his aqua coloured eyes focused on Igneous. For somebody who was apparently being tested by Leigh, he hardly looked like he lifted a weapon at all. He only looked a little winded, and Igneous could see that he was breathing deeply, but that was it. Garath looked more like a man who worked – his face gleaned with sweat and he looked happy that he had food, but since his eyes were squinted, he had to go off of everything else in his face.

"I don't know. I want to tell him but I'm not sure if it would change anything," Igneous said with a frown. "I think... if I saw the man right now, I could probably point him out. It was rather detailed so..."

"I will send somebody, Igneous," Leigh said. "If that makes you feel better. At least then, nobody can say you didn't try."

"It may be possible that somebody like him, somebody who was told that they will die, is already resigned to death," Elena offered. "He may let it happen because he believes it has to happen." Igneous blinked at her. He didn't want to think that he caused death just by telling somebody what he saw. If he saw a way to save King Jarid, he would have told him. All he knew was what he saw.

"That is a good point," Garath said. "It's unfortunate."

"I don't think telling him will accomplish anything. He must have already increased security at the palace because Zahan attacked and there's no reason why they wouldn't try again. What more can he do?" Saikur asked with a shrug. "Igneous, you have to stop taking what you see to heart. I don't know why you're so bothered with King Jarid but you've done all you can. It's time to let it go."

Saikur often had a point. He was rather insightful for somebody who was essentially the same age. Then again, both of them grew up fast, Igneous losing a childhood due to bullies and eventual work and Saikur due to his family circumstances. There was a silence in the air until Garath broke it.

"Leigh, how long have you been with Igneous for?" Garath asked suddenly. Igneous figured it was just something to break

"Only for around six or seven years, I believe," Leigh answered quickly. Igneous could remember being approximately ten when Leigh first made his appearance as his first guardian, instead of just a caretaker.

"Only?" Gerben asked. "You were his first guardian. Then it was me and then Saikur became official once he had enough training."

"Why did you help out, anyway?" Saikur asked, completely interrupting the flow of the conversation. It was like he really wasn't listening, he just had a concern and vocalized it.

"I helped because Zahan's actions were far from honourable. They shouldn't have involved civilians with the fire," he stated.

There was a sudden knock on the door. A girl they didn't recognize walked in, with one of the priests closing the door behind her. Her white hair was pulled into a ponytail, though Igneous could see some light brown strands running through it, and she had golden eyes that remind Igneous of his own. Her upper body, shoulders and armours were all covered in red and gold armour, but underneath it all, she wore what looked to be either a short dress or a tunic with belts at her waist and long boots that went past her knees. These were white. She had a satchel attached to one of the belts on her right side. However, the most noticeable thing about her appearance was the ugly scar that ran up her neck, still visible despite her armour. In her arms, she held a book and a piece of paper.

Elena looked shocked. "Oh no, let's take a look at that," she said, immediately moving from her place at the table to the women's side. She focused in one the scar. "Does it hurt? Do you need anything for it?"

She opened her book and withdrew a writing utensil from her satchel and scribbled something into her notebook. Elena watched. "Only when you talk then? That's good, I was worried it was more painful than that. I guess it's an older scare... either way, it wouldn't do for somebody like you," she said.

"What is her name?" Gerben asked, leaning back from his position to get a better look at her. The girl squeaked and immediately ran behind Elena.

"What the heck did you do to make her so scared?" Elena asked, her voice accusatory. Gerben blinked at her.

"Heck if I know! All I did was ask for her name!"

Leigh got up and moved over to her. Leigh, with his giant bulky armour, effectively blocked the woman from their view. "I know ursurines can look intimidating but Gerben is very nice. He wouldn't hurt you. Why are you here though?"

None of them could see her response and for a moment, neither Elena or Leigh said anything. Mira shifted uncomfortably in her seat while Reina looked rather empathetic, her hand over her chest. "I hope she will be alright," she said quietly.

"I just want to know what I did wrong. I wasn't trying to scare her," he said just as quietly.

Leigh turned around, holding the piece of papers in his hand. "This is Caalya and she'll be joining us. Gerben, try not to scare her," he stated. Gerben let out a low growl, one that only those at the table could hear. "She says she's a dark flier, in case you guys are curious."

"What did I even do?" Gerben asked carefully. Caalya bit her lips and then scribbled something down in her book and presented it to Elena.

"She says she scared of bears. Sorry Gerben, looks like you just have to be patient with her."

"You should sit and eat, Caayla!" Mira called cheerfully. Caalya nodded, going behind Gerben for what Igneous thought was a way to avoid his gaze, and sat on the same side he did. She did seem more relaxed, but it was going to be hard for them to travel around if she had a hard time even looking at Gerben, somebody who never personally harmed her. He was curious about what happened but at the same time, he respected the sort of privacy one could find from their past because it belonged to them. He spent so much time invading privacy by reading somebody's future anyway. He thought of Saikur for a moment but he let the thought go.

He managed a smile though. It was fun to watch Gerben be miffed about Caalya but he wasn't angry with her. It was fun to be surrounded by people in an occasion outside of work. It was fun to listen to others, even if they didn't talk very much.

* * *

When night rolled around and everybody had more or less gone to bed, Igneous walked into the lobby with a lit candle to guide his way. He placed the candle down on the floor in front of the statues of Mayon and Vulcan. He couldn't sleep, and his previous naps throughout the day where probably to blame but his thoughts on his own didn't help make him sleep. He was bored, wide awake, but most of all, lonely. He didn't expect anybody to really be up, so he was alone with his thoughts again.

Or so he thought until he heard bare feet move towards his direction. He turned his head and found Reina in the doorway, pulling the curtain aside. She silent joined him. Unlike him, she didn't have a candle but the candle he brought brought an orange glow to her white hair and dress. It made her hair and dress look more blue than when she was more light. "What are you doing up so late?" Igneous asked.

"I could ask the same of you. I couldn't fall asleep again when I had a nightmare," she said with a sigh. "But I'm not that tired right now. I usually stay up late anyway. What of you?"

"I couldn't fall asleep," he answered. "I'm glad you're here though. It's lonely around here right now."

"Lonely in what way? The fact that everybody else is probably sleeping or because the only people who know what is like to be an oracle are dead?"

"Both, I suppose," Igneous mumbled. When he was alone, he always thought about his abilities. In the end, it came down to the fact that he was the oracle and he didn't know why he was the only one in Haelin. He had questions but nobody could give him any answers. The more he thought about, the more he wanted to be around people to distract himself.

"I know that loneliness well, the kind where nobody is like myself."

Igneous looked at her oddly. He knew there was something about her, something that made her seem off when he compared her to somebody like Mira. Both of them were kind, seemed to love to help when they could, but there was something more... closer and warmer about Mira.

"I always felt that you were different but I couldn't tell why," Igneous said. "You are also joining us but it doesn't look like you do any battling, unless you're a mage."

"In truth, I didn't want to come but I already fond of this group so I will see this through with you. It would have been less painful to go my own separate way but I always do this to myself," she said sadly. She looked upset, especially more so in the candle light. She was more interested in looking at her hands in her lap than at Igneous.

"Reina... you can tell me anything. I'm not sure if it will help but we're both unlike the others in one way, aren't we?"

"I'm part manakete. My father was a human and died of old age a long time ago. My mother was... taken before her time due ungrounded hate. I've never met anybody who was part manakete like myself," Reina answered, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. "I'm fortunate enough to have rounded ears like my father. I can pass for a regular human."

A manakete, or at least half manakete. Igneous would not have guessed that just by looking at her. Aside from her wise eyes and that air she had, she looked like a normal human. She looked kind of like Caalya, with white hair and an uncommon eye colour, but not even she had the air around her. Igneous would have considered himself like Caalya but he couldn't be called normal. It must have saved her. He could also understand why she thought it was so painful for her to travel with them – she would make friends with humans who would only die before her.

"You must think I'm strange," she said.

"Don't forget, you're talking to somebody who can see the future," he said with a small smile. "We're all a bit weird, aren't we? But I'm sure that along the way, you'll meet somebody more like you... at least, somebody that has more than seventy years or so to begin with. We have to at least see that sea serpent that you spoke of."

"I would enjoy that. I've never had the chance to really meet other manaketes since they seem so rare. On the other hand, I also enjoy the friendships here too, even if pain is inevitable. I can't help but to make friends, no matter how much that might hurt in the end."

"At least you can say it happened when it ends. Isn't it better to have had friendships like these than to have been alone the entire time?" Igneous asked. "At least that's how I would have it if I lived a long life."

Reina was destined for a long life. Perhaps she would not as long as a full-blooded manakete but she had the opposite problem he may be facing. The other two oracles didn't see their fiftieth year and while Elena noted some differences between him and the other two, he didn't think he was different enough to last past fifty. He was probably doomed to have a short life. Maybe his differences would make his life even shorter.

"Maybe we should both try to get back to sleep," Reina said after a few moments of silence.

"That sounds good," Igneous said, raising to his feet. He grabbed the candle. "Hey, Reina."

"Yes?"

"I'm glad you're coming with us."

She smiled warmly. "Me too."

* * *

 _Sorry guys, I didn't mean to go a whole month without an update. I'm working way more than I thought I would (I need to learn to say no) and just ended up being too tired to write a lot. I hate missing a month because that's my bare minimum but hopefully that gets better!  
_


	6. In The Middle

Darren sighed as he sat down with his sister in his father's personal study. The study was relatively small, in comparison to the rest of the rooms in the castle, and comfortable – there was red velvet curtains, a red rug, and an ornate gold and red chair. His father loved using gold and red, the colours of Adoss, wherever he could. There was a large, oak desk and a round table complete with chairs at the other end of the room and it was there that the two siblings sat.

He had to admit, things were rough since their return from the oracle. Not only did the oracle predict nothing positive in their immediate future but it was closely followed by an attack from Zahan that the oracle failed to mention, though his father thought that maybe he only saw any sign of an attack after they left. In his father's eyes, the oracle could do nothing wrong, no matter what he said. He never challenged him or even the one before that, as far as Darren knew. That oracle died when Darren was but a baby.

His father insisted that since he didn't have a lot of time left, then he would spend more time with his children. Darren had no issue with the idea of bonding with his father since he was so busy that there wasn't a lot of time for a father-son relationship to be maintained. He just took issue that it was all on advice from the oracle and he should have always tried to find time for his children anyway. His father just lapped up every word like a thirsty animal. It was like his father had no personal thoughts of his own on the matter and he might have well just handed his crown over to Igneous if he was going to act like that. However, Darren didn't want to upset his father by saying it out loud.

His sister sat down beside him but she looked very unimpressed. She been that way for a while. Darren was only a year older and he remembered that at one point, they were close. They would share everything and do everything together but he couldn't point out when that suddenly changed and she became moody and distant. He couldn't even really think of how it happened. Maybe she was jealous of him, that he was destined for the crown and she destined to be married off or maybe something else happened that neither he or his father were aware of. A sudden image of a secret lover came into his mind but he was sure that his sister was better than that.

"Darren, Lauren, thanks for coming," Father said. "I wanted to discuss Zahan's recent invasion."

"What is there to be said that hasn't been said?" Lauren asked, her arms crossed in front of her chest.

"Lauren, we've boosted security for the sake of everybody who is living and working here but that doesn't adequately address the problem. We don't quite know what Zahan intended to do with that attack of theirs but I do believe it has something to do with what the oracle said. I can die fighting... perhaps Zahan will take my life," the king said quietly, his gaze towards the floor.

"Again with the oracle..." Darren mumbled, suppressing the urge to roll his eyes. He was tired of the oracle and his words.

"Darren, I believe in his power. I saw Vulcan's words come to life before my eyes and I don't believe Igneous will miss his mark either. That being said, if this how I am to die, I don't want either of you here. I want you both to seek refuge in Vedia or Silcyia."

Darren shot to his feet while Lauren's eyebrows shot up, the only change in expression Darren saw of her since they both sat down. "But father! Why do you put so much faith into his words anyway? He could say anything and you would soak it all up! You sound as if you're giving up and I'll be damned if I give up too! I'm not running away from Zahan! We didn't even need our soldiers to take care of them!"

"I'm not giving up, Darren! I'm just accepting my faith and my death but you still have a future! You and Lauren!" his father cried out, staying in his seat but leaning forward, his knuckles turning white against his grip on the chair arms.

"What kind of future do I have, father?" Lauren asked. "What did that oracle say? That I'm dressed with plain clothing? What does that mean? Not even the oracle which you so highly praise could figure that out. I don't see anything worthwhile in my future so I might as well stay." She adjusted her position, resting her head on the arm propped on the arm chair.

"Lauren..."

"The oracle said that so long as you fight, we'll both survive," Darren said, sitting down again. "That doesn't mean we should leave... or at least both of us." His father's grip on the arm chair loosened and his face relaxed. Darren didn't know exactly what he was saying. On one hand, he was agreeing with Igneous and using his words against his father but it occurred to him that he wasn't fighting for his own stay. Why was he defending Lauren? Maybe he thought there was still something for her to do in the palace, something she needed to see or say, maybe something that would snap her out of her emotional rut.

"What do you mean, Darren?"

"Lauren should stay. It might be safer for her that way, with Zahan instead of running from them," he mumbled. Lauren turned her gaze towards him, looking mildly interested in what he had to say. "But if you're so insistent that you're going to die, then the least I can do is respect your wishes and leave. I'm the one who can handle it and maybe I have something to accomplish out there."

Or maybe, he was starting to understand what Igneous was just trying to say. Maybe his disagreement mostly came from the fact that he just didn't want his father to go. He was a good father, a good king, and when his mother was still around, he was a great husband. The only negative thing that could be said was his reliance on the oracle, but it wasn't like his father was the only king or noble to have done that and his reliance come from a good place to do well for his country. Adoss would lose a great man.

His father hesitated before looking Darren straight in the eye. "Is this your gut feeling? That Lauren should stay while you go?"

"It is," he answered. His father smiled.

"I will trust you too then. You're my son and I've been teaching everything I know. If this is your feeling, then I will trust you too as a future king. But I have to ask... why?"

"As I said, I'll respect your wishes. Besides, Adoss needs somebody to fight for it."

"Pick your favourite soldier to go with you," Father said. "But I will also send a soldier named Ajax with you."

Darren blinked. He never heard of somebody by the name of Ajax and he thought he was pretty knowledgeable when it came to the soldiers, anybody with a good rank was somebody he saw and trained with regularly, or at that was the case a year ago. Darren had to take a step back, train on his own, and deal with some of the paperwork that came with being involved with the state of a country. Who is Ajax and why did his father trust him so?

"About a year ago, his father, one of the lesser known marquises, came to me to ask about the state of Adoss' external affairs, wondering if it was safe for his son to join the military. That son is Ajax, and I've heard recently that Ajax is thriving. You may not have heard because in the past year, you've been busy."

"I... see," Darren mumbled. Ajax had to be someone of skill to be advance so quickly. "So Ajax and Fara then." He stood up just as he father did and Darren was surprised when his father took him into a tight embrace. Darren felt his lip quivering a bit as he hugged his father back. It was the probably the final goodbye. He doubted he would ever see his father alive again.

"I'm proud of you both. Never forget that."

* * *

Within an hour, Darren was already packing belongings and major supplies. Fara was already with him, her auburn coloured hair tied back into a long braid with the remainder framing her face. Her brown eyes were focused on helping, and she was wearing her gold on red armour on her tall and strangely thin frame. Darren was close to her – she was an only child to a commander, so she Darren were trained together from an early age. Fara herself became a formidable trainer and commander, one that could rival her father's skills.

"Do you know Ajax?" Darren asked. Fara paused for a moment.

"I know of him," she answered quickly. "I haven't trained him personally but I've heard he's somebody who has potential because he's dedicated to learning. You know, when it's peaceful, you don't get people who try that hard."

"I see," he mumbled. He could understand wanting to work hard at training, but nobody went through so much without a purpose or a reason.

Ajax arrived while they were packing, or at least Darren assumed he had to be Ajax. He had his own bag packed. To Darren, Ajax did seem to resemble nobility, with short brown hair that was spiked back, though some stray strands fell in onto his forehead. He wore the gold on red armour and though he wasn't as heavily armoured as an armour knight, he was still well protected and he had plenty of muscle to fill out his armour. Underneath, he wore a white cotton shirt and brown pants and he topped the look off with a red cape, one that could only really be afforded by somebody with wealth. He looked at him curiously with blue eyes.

"So, this is something special, isn't it?" Ajax mumbled. "I mean, not everybody gets summoned to meet the prince. You are the prince, right? I'm not imaging this?"

"You are of nobility, right? Why would it be so strange to meet me? Your family should be attending all of the same social functions," Darren said, raising an eyebrow. Most people wouldn't know him personally but he saw a lot of nobles and there was no way the nobles missed him. It shouldn't surprise Ajax that they were in the same building.

"I may not be a commoner but my family is pretty low on the nobility social ladder so sometimes we are disregarded when other nobles walk into the room," he explained. "I still find honour in being summoned at any rate."

"Here, I think we're good for packing. We've got gold, weapons, tents, dried food, clothing, and other essential materials. Ajax, do you ride a horse?" Fara asked as she began closing their bags.

"I can," he answered. "I don't own one personally since I don't use one for battle."

"Good enough, I'll fit you with a horse. We need to get this stuff up on horses and we'll explain everything on the way."

Darren didn't know how long they would be, so he decided to take one of the packs and load it on his horse while he waited. He felt oddly antsy, so he didn't want to stop when he could be doing something. Besides, he had the feeling that the oracle was starting to make sense and it left a lump in his throat. His long path... had to do with the fight to win his kingdom back in the name of his father.

So maybe the oracle was right and Darren didn't want it to be right. He could imagine the smug look on Igneous' face as he lounged on that stupid cushion of his. He took in a deep breath, held it, and released it slowly. Stop it, he had to stop it. He couldn't afford to get upset and angry at the oracle who, in the end, couldn't help his gift or at least, that's what he made it out to be. He could be making it up for all Darren knew. Regardless, his father want Igneous' opinion and he got it. His father trusted him, his father trusted the last one, and he didn't want to look like the fool king who ignored him.

He would have to work with him, at least for the confidence of the people.

Darren threw the packed bag onto his shoulder and huffed as he left the building with it, travelling to the stables with it for his own horse. He spotted Fara and Ajax there, with Ajax petting one of the horses. "Oh, you're here," Fara mumbled.

"I figured I was going to at least pack my horse while Ajax got his," Darren mumbled as he placed his bag down in his horse's stall. His horse whinnied when he saw him, probably expecting a treat. He was a good companion and a good, well trained horse, but he was a bit spoiled and he was probably not going to get the treats he wanted on the road. He saddled his horse, threw a blanket on his horse where the saddle didn't cover, then proceeded to begin to tie down his back to the horse.

Darren could have had a servant do all of it for him but Darren found some strange satisfaction in doing some hard work himself. It was boring if everything was done for him and with the situation he found himself in, he was afraid of slowing down. The only thing he could really think of was to keep moving and make some distance and it was just easier to do it himself.

Fara looked at him with sympathy. "Darren, we still have plenty of sun left."

"And I plan on using as much as I can," he mumbled. "It's my father's last wish – that I come back ready to take back Adoss. It will fall and it sounds ridiculous but the oracle said so and he's probably right! I hate it! But what the hell can I do but listen to him? I will probably end up dead if I didn't and then who would rule? Who would fight back?"

"Darren, please, I understand that you are upset and stressed but you do need to remain calm," Ajax said grabbing Darren by the shoulders and twisting him around so they were face to face. "You need to have a level head about this. Getting too emotional will cloud your judgement and if you're going to take back Adoss, you can't afford to have that happen. Breath deeply, it always helps me."

Darren listened while he could feel Fara tensing beside him. There was just something about Ajax taking charge and telling him what he needed to hear instead of what he wanted to hear that made him more focused. He did as he was told and did find himself relaxing.

"Thank you, Ajax," Darren said. Ajax grinned and patted his back. When Ajax's hand dropped, Darren's horse brushed his head against his arm. He wanted a treat.

"Hey, it's not a problem!" he answered before he headed towards the brown horse he was petting earlier. "Fara, I think this horse is the one for me."

"Very well," she said.

* * *

 _In The Barren..._

Erin lost count of the time she spent in The Barren with the bulk of Zahan's army. She figured it had to be about a week, but time flew by when she was deep in thought. She wasn't sure how long they would spend in The Barren either so she certainly wanted to do the most she could and conquer the mysteries surrounding it once and for all. She been there before, determined to prove that The Barren was safe and should be taken advantage of but there was just nothing there to support her case. Actually, there wasn't anything at all. It was the word of two dead oracles against her own and the oracles won.

She was bound and determined to succeed this time. She couldn't handle failing again.

She pushed a lock of her purple hair back, pushed her glasses up and sat down on one of the many stones scattered around The Barren. She sat a small travelling bag on the ground beside her, where she stored a journal of all she observed, a Nosferatu tome, a writing utensil, and a couple of bottles of ink. From where she sat, she could see a dip in the landscape, one that didn't seem to be there since the last time she was there years ago. Was The Barren still changing?

She discovered a couple of things that she either hadn't noticed the first time she studied The Barren or were more recent changes since. There was the dip, that she was sure wasn't there before, and all of the rocks scattered didn't seem to be exactly random, or in other words, weren't placed there by natural processes. It looked almost as some had been placed there and her goal was to see if there was any sort of pattern.

"How goes your research?"

She recognized her queen's voice when she heard it. She wouldn't even be given the second chance had it not been for Queen Asteria. She was rather informal for a queen and that was probably why she was the one out of all the rulers in Haelin to recognize the potential of attaining more land. She was always interested in Erin's studies, both with the more recent studies of dark magic and her previous studies of The Barren and it felt great that somebody was finally looking at her studies with the same sort of passion she had.

The queen was also pretty – she had long black hair, steel coloured eyes, and black armour adorned mainly on her chest, shoulders, and thighs but the icy blue fabric under her armour, which also fanned out from her hips and stopped at her ankles, looked thick as well. She looked liked a regular soldier but at the same time, strutted confidence in both her manner and actions.

"Same old, Your Highness" Erin mumbled. "I've made more observations in the past week than I had when I studied it previously but I'm not sure how it is all connected."

"For example?"

"For one, I've never noticed that dip in the middle... it is the exact centre of Haelin, I believe, and I'm sure that it's relatively new. I've noticed a vast amount of rocks, but I'm sure some of them look as though they been moved here," she muttered, looking through the notes she brought with her.

"Is there a pattern?"

"I was going to see, Milady," Erin answered.

"My Queen," a man said suddenly, making both Erin and Queen Asteria turn around. The man seemed to be almost a whole foot taller than Erin was, with dark hair that was slicked back, and he regarded everybody with hard, brown eyes. His armour was the same colour as the queen's, except he had the armour of a wyvern rider, and true to her guess, a wyvern landed beside him, his wings folding down to his side. The man looked to be the type of persona who took everything too seriously.

"What is it, Demitri?"

"The messenger came back. The soldier, Nicias, that promised to find the oracle for you fell in battle. The troops he had in Dosia were killed and the only troops who remain are camped outside of Dosia and backing off."

The queen seemed hardly surprised, her first reaction being a mere, nonchalant shrug at the situation. "I didn't think he would succeed."

"You still let him go," he mumbled.

"I did. I figured if he was successful, then he proved himself to me. However, if he didn't, I figured it wouldn't affect my plans too much. They will be expecting us, of course, but there will be no where they can hide. They won't come here so we can expect what path they will take."

"And if you don't mind me asking, Your Highness, what exactly are those plans of yours? When you brought me along, it just seemed like you wanted The Barren but since then, you have sent troops into Dosia in hopes of capturing the oracle. What reason do you have for all of this?" Erin asked. It was the one thing that bothered her. It was one thing to ask her study The Barren again and she was excited to go, to conquer what eluded her last time but also because she studied dark magic in the mean time, hoping that she would get an answer with the new knowledge.

But it seemed like Queen Asteria wanted something more, something she realized as soon as she stepped foot in The Barren. It was odd to say in the least. Erin didn't plan on leaving – no matter where she went, the queen sought knowledge and Erin wanted to be the one to search for the answers. She wanted to provide her scholarly skills to anybody who was willing to take them.

"It's all necessary to make Zahan great, trust me. That being said, while you do research here, Erin, I will need Demitri to kill King Jarid in Dosia. I will also need you to regroup what troops remain there and but I want you to wait for me there. Try not to kill anybody who isn't involved, hence why I'm sending you and not any of the more blood thirsty generals like Russel. I can't let you know why now but all will become clear later."

Demitri just nodded, his expression staying neutral. "Would you like me to leave now?"

"Please," she answered. Erin huffed. She was really curious about the turn of events, yet the queen seemed adamant about keeping to herself. Then again, it was just one more puzzle to solve. Demitri, like the boring man he seemed to be, just hopped onto his wyvern. For a second, she saw the smallest bit of positive emotion – he affectionately patted the top of his wyvern's head – before taking off. So the man was capable of more expressions than just that hard, judging look in his eyes. How interesting it was that people could regard other people as being on the same level as dirt, yet animals could garner respect from them. Why were the animals so innocent, despite the animal world being just as cruel?

She supposed, with no moving, breathing, companion of her own – though that wasn't to say she didn't have companions – she just didn't understand.

"Do you still require anything of me or can I begin my studies for the day, Your Highness?" Erin asked. She knew it was rude to just walk away from a person of high social status. Her parents would not have forgiven her if she walked away from the Queen. They weren't even around at the moment for her to disappoint but she couldn't dare to forget anyway, just as if they were around.

"You may begin. Don't let me keep you," she answered, walking away.

Erin hopped off her rock. She was going to take a look at all of those rocks and see if there was something to do them after all. If they were placed there, then there had to be a reason why. She produced a bottle of ink from the bag before strapping it over her shoulders. She opened the ink bottle and carefully, poured some of the ink on top of the rock, marking where she started her studies. She didn't want to look at the same rocks more than once since she had a lot of ground to cover. She grinned to herself, excited for the possibilities.

But as the ink poured down the slanted surface of the rock, she noticed something odd. She didn't notice it before, either due to the light coloured rock or due to it being so thin, but there was a a collection of shallow scratches on the rock that was definitely not natural because it was in the shape of a familiar word. Though small, the word was in a language that she could find in her tome. No wonder she missed it, she thought as she realized just thinly scratched on the word was. Heck, she even sat on it. Erin cracked a smirk as excitement bubbled in her chest. She had to be the first one to come across a small word etched into a rock in the middle of The Barren. She, and nobody else, was the first one to come across a break through.

Nobody could take that away from her. Erin felt like she was on top of the world.

Not caring if she got whether or finger or purple robes got dirty, Erin traced the ink covered word with her her finger. Whoever scratched it on there seemed to have done so in a hurry, though it could also be that the tools they used to scratch the surface was difficult for the person to use. Unlike a weathered tombstone, the word hadn't eroded with time like it she would have expected. Who knew how long those rocks were around for? For all the history they had in the form of written records, The Barren was always toxic, unsafe for anybody to enter and go and scratch words on rocks. The thin scratches should have been long gone, predating any sort of records that existed and yet, she could run her finger all over it. Perhaps magic kept it preserved because as a mage, she would have been able to sense it and yet, she didn't feel anything.

The thought that it might have just been ancient graffiti crossed her mind for a brief second before she made a circle in her journal, writing the small word on the inside of it. She had to see if there were rocks with other words, other words that were guarded from the passage of time with magic. She threw everything into her bag and ran as fast as she could to the next rock, dumping ink on that rock as well. As suspected, there was a different letter on the rock. She recorded that one as well.

But what was so important about these rocks that somebody had to scribble words on rocks and then protect them with magic that was probably so weak that Erin couldn't sense the spell? The magic was probably wearing away. It was a miracle the spells lasted as long as they did and as went from rock to rock, pouring ink on top and recording the word etched on it, she began to wonder what would happen when the magic dissolved completely. The words she could read in her journal were slowly turning into a sentence and her starting rock seemed to have been in the middle and she assumed that she managed to find the end, so the next rock should have the beginning. It so far read, when translated, as:

 _'us from this evil'_

Instead of being worried or frightened, she found herself excited. If evil was what tainted The Barren in the first place, then the rejuvenation was perhaps because the evil was gone. She thought about it but she decided that it was probably wasn't the case when she considered the queen's sudden change in plans. She wanted to improve Zahan by taking The Barren, to give her people a better chance by introducing more fertile land before she had to share with the other countries. There were no real plans for war, despite Zahan being armed, excited, and ready to go. Spending time at The Barren though, was when she decided she had to conquer Dosia, kill the king, and find the oracle.

Was she being influenced by evil?

But then again, what was evil? Dark magic was underused because people thought it was malicious and evil, that somehow hurting people with wind, thunder and fire was the best alternative. She thought that studying dark magic would take her studies of The Barren further. She remembered when she first discovered it, when she took to it, that she found that the purple lights and fog rang a bell with her. It reminded her of how The Barren used to be, so she hoped that connections could be made between the two of them. She also had magic to thank for making her excited to research again after her studies of The Barren went no where.

People considered whatever they didn't like or understand as evil. Perhaps the so called 'evil' wasn't evil, just like how dark magic wasn't evil – most people just didn't want to take the time to understand it. She couldn't refute that The Barren was downright toxic and made anything ill but then why would it change? If something was sealed here, did that automatically mean it was evil? Erin couldn't answer that, as she knew nothing of the what the evil could be. There was no actual record of it, aside from rocks that proclaimed it to be evil.

She was sure that whatever it was, it was definitely providing some sort of influence over the queen, or perhaps the queen was working with it like a partner so it spoke to her only. It was probably The Barren, whatever it truly was, that gave Queen Asteria the bigger vision, one that supposedly help Zahan. It could happen, considering that if something was sealed, the magic was probably so weak that The Barren could probably have some form of communication with them. Erin was uneasy in that she had no idea of the extent of power the supposed evil had and by the lack of knowledge in both what Zahan was dealing with and the lack of knowledge of the plan itself. Adoss was probably just a stepping stone. Perhaps the queen and the evil wanted all of Haelin, but then what was the point? It was stupid to try to take over Haelin, it was hard to control. Additionally, she was also assuming that Queen Asteria probably knew a lot more about The Barren then she let on.

Erin took a deep breath, trying to calm herself and focus herself on the evidence first and foremost. She could think of the meaning and the possible relationships of the words when she didn't have to worry about losing daylight. That was the real fun after all, connecting the evidence with possible hypotheses but there was a time and place for it. Besides, more evidence could help her focus her hypotheses from many down to a few. She couldn't wait to throw herself at it and present and confront the queen. Perhaps when presented with what she found, the queen may tell Erin more.

With a big grin on her face, she dashed to the next rock, eager to get the full message.

* * *

 _This chapter has a lot of rambling and is wordy since a lot of it is internal - however, we'll be back to Igneous later and he isn't as wordy as Erin is._

 _You will also notice that I've closed character submissions. I'm still trying to place characters that were submitted a while ago and adding more characters on top of that isn't so appealing._

 _And finally, time for some rambling!_

 _I want to say something about the classes because it will become important for some characters. I get the feeling that a lot of people aren't super familiar with the three tier system in Radiant Dawn, which brought around some of my favourite classes like sentinels. From some of the character submissions I do have, they want their characters in some of those third tier classes... and it creates a little bit of trouble when we have trueblade being the highest for swords in one insistent but making swordmasters the highest in the insistence of another character. For me, somebody who dwells in Tellius, I want to promote the swordmasters but I understand that in every other game, there is no promotion. But I believe that these characters are so few in number that it shouldn't end up being to big of a deal so I will have both trueblades and swordmasters for instance. They will equivalents so to say. I will also be keeping my sentinel, like Queen Asteria here._

 _That being said, I'm trying to merge continents and take my favourite things from each game, not springboard from one particular game. Of course, this mean also mean that things I don't like will be mentioned sparsely or not at all and as time goes on, Outrealms being an example of the sparsely mentioned concepts. Don't be surprised if you submitted a character that has a background with canon characters don't have their backgrounds mentioned a whole lot. I'm not ignoring their background, it's just doesn't entirely match up with I want to accomplish - an original continent full of original and submitted characters.  
_


	7. The Start of the Journey

For the next two days, Igneous found himself bored and passed the time in his room. There were no visions of the future, which he found both relaxing and nerve-wrecking. While he didn't have to over think and confuse himself about what he saw, he was sometimes afraid that he no longer had the ability to see the future if he went without it. It wasn't hard to reassure himself – he just had to shake somebody's hand – but he was still paranoid it. He also hated not knowing what was going to happen and he also feared that a break meant that something really bad could happen.

Despite the temple being fuller than ever, it was quiet. His guardians buzzed around him, asking constantly if he was alright or if he needed or wanted anything and he fond himself saying no quite often. They sometimes stuck around for a conversation afterwards but they didn't seem to linger for too long before they were off again. He figured that everybody else was just busy but he never did ask about what they were doing when they ate together.

On the third day, the afternoon of the full moon, Igneous noticed something new while sitting in front of the temple and watching the citizens rebuild. When he woke up, rather late into the afternoon, there was somebody new at the entrance of the temple. He had dark blue hair, which was short, pale skin and green eyes but Igneous' eyes were drawn to the large, oversized jacket that he wore. It reminded of the puffy robes he saw from some mages and though it wasn't as long, and Igneous felt a little stuffy himself looking at it. Maybe that was because he felt a little hotter than most people did, according to some of the people he read. Maybe he had some sort of attachment to the jacket because it just looked unnecessarily large.

Igneous blinked. "Do you need something?"

"There was a poster that was requesting help at this location. Do you know anything about that?"

"Yeah, come in," he said, getting up from his spot and waved at the stranger to follow him.

"My name is Iniabi by the way," he said, offering a hand. Igneous just kept going – he didn't want to read him if he didn't want to.

"And I'm Igneous."

Iniabi didn't look offended, just a little puzzled, and just nodded as they passed the statues of Mayon and Vulcan. "Igneous? As in the oracle? People always recommend you to people with extra gold. You're the attraction here."

Igneous didn't respond to that. Iniabi didn't say anything more until Igneous knocked on the door to Leigh's room. He guardian was not wearing his armour that day but instead, he was wearing a plain, short sleeved shirt and baggy pants. He looked overly casual at least in Igneous' mind. He could probably count on one hand the amount of times he saw Leigh wearing something that had nothing to do with his uniform in the six years that Igneous knew him. If he didn't wear the whole suit, which Igneous understood to be a lot of armour, he at least wore parts of it just in case. Leigh smiled.

"Igneous, hello! Is that another person who decided to come help?"

"Yeah, I figured you would be the one who could best fill him in on everything," Igneous said with a smile.

"I'm Iniabi," he said as brought his hand out. Leigh shook it.

"I'm Leigh, one of Igneous' guardians here. Come in, I will fill you in our predicament. That way, you properly decide if this is something you want to help us with," Leigh explained.

"I just need a little bit of a background is all so I can do best here. If you guys need help, my tomes are yours, that's not an issue."

"You can use a tome?" Igneous asked. He knew it would be hard for him to directly participate in any sort of action but he was always interested in fire magic. He always saw a connection with himself and fire, so he decided a while ago that if he wanted or needed to fight, it would be with fire magic. Not just any sort of magic, but fire in particular. However, the need of defending himself only came up recently, so there was no investment of any sort into his interest in fire magic. He didn't even have his own tome but maybe Iniabi could help him get started if he happened to have a beginner's tome on him though Igneous somehow doubted that. He was aware that Caalya had a tome on her, or he at least assumed so because she had more books around then than her communication book, but if speaking pained her than he didn't want to bother her. Iniabi wasn't going to get such mercy though.

If it even bothered Iniabi. He seemed difficult to bother in his determination to help people.

"Later, Igneous," Leigh said as he grabbed Iniabi by the arm and pulled him into his room. Igneous huffed but he supposed there would be time on the road. He decided just to go to his own room after that since Leigh would just call for him when they were ready and Iniabi was all caught up. He had nothing packed up even though he was encouraged by others in the last couple of days but the simple truth was, he didn't know what to pack. When he left his home village, he brought nothing with him but the clothes on his back. The knights who took him to Dosia seemed a little surprised by that but it wasn't like he had much of a life in that village.

People only took care of him because they felt obligated to do so somehow. He was just a child, not one that they liked, but it would look terrible if they didn't care for him. Saikur often had snacks for him and Saikur was the only truly friend he had but Sarrel, Saikur's older brother, would never allow Igneous to enter his home so he could never sleep there. He spent the nights being shuffled around and sleeping on the floor of any given house.

Now that he had things, he couldn't quite figure out what was important to bring. Aside from the trip from his home village to his new residence in the temple, he never went far enough to require him to pack. He wanted his bedding and his pillows, along with all of his jewelry but he supposed everybody else would be considered it to be a waste of space. Mira had everything she cared about already pack away because she came from a travelling trope. Arder, Reina, and maybe Iniabi and seemed to have been wanderers. Garath... he wasn't sure about what Garath did but he clearly travelled a lot in the past. He wasn't too sure about Caalya either since the colours she wore were certainly those of Adoss.

Igneous didn't know how long he contemplated his packing problems when Arder opened his door, the first time Igneous saw him since the other night. When he thought about it, he also hadn't seen Caalya since the previous night either. "Leigh wants all in the mess to discuss our plans," he said simply. Igneous followed him where everybody else was already seated and waiting. He sat down beside Gerben and Saikur as Leigh rolled out a map across their table.

"First, I would like to introduce everybody to Iniabi. He's come to help us out," Leigh said, gesturing to the new member for their group. Iniabi nodded and waved a little and Igneous again, couldn't help but to feel hot for him when he saw the heavy jacket he was wearing.

"As you all know by this point, Zahan is after Igneous. For what purpose they have for him we don't yet know but we have to keep him out of their grasp. Adoss is no longer safe so we must reach Vedia by going though Fraedia. Arder and Caalya just came back from scouting the Zahan camp and they are still waiting in the same location they have been since the fire. We should leave tonight." So that was why Igneous hadn't seen either one of them.

"You know how dangerous Fraedia can be, right?" Elena asked. "It might be better to try and find somebody who is willing to deal with pirates on the water."

"Fraedia is the best place to grab mercenaries though," Saikur mumbled. "They should be able to take care of the bandits."

"What about the slave problem?" Mira asked suddenly. "You'll have to be extra careful to stay clear of it."

"What about it?" Leigh asked.

"Not all slaves are obtained legally," Reina stated with a hurt look in her eyes. "Some slaves are debt slaves, some are born slaves and others are kidnapped and sold into slavery. You are not only contending with bandits in Fraedia but you would be contending with illegal slave traders. I believe that's what Mira is getting at."

"Slave traders would definitely go after Igneous," Garath chimed in, a hand on his chin.

"Wait, why?" Igneous asked suddenly. He doubted he could be picked out as the oracle in Fraedia, so he didn't know why he would be wearing a target on his back. Saikur looked a little sorry for him.

"It's because of your appearance," Elena said with a shrug. "Slaves that are particularly strong or particularly good-looking are more expensive than you know, the average slave. Strong slaves work better but when it comes to the pretty ones, they're just another way for nobles to flaunt their wealth. It may also be worthy to note that a lot nobles are rumoured to have more than one illegitimate child around, just in case you were wondering why the pretty ones are sought after at all."

That startled him and for a moment, he completely faltered and for a brief moment, he just wanted to stay in the temple. That wasn't a life he was at all interested in but he couldn't just stay in Dosia where he was definitely a target just because he was afraid that somebody might catch him and sell him. Besides, he was sure that Mira's brother was in Fraedia so he didn't want to just take a boat to Vedia and bypass Fraedia completely. He swallowed hard. "I still feel like we need to go into Fraedia. This vision I saw earlier didn't take place on any sort of large body of water," Igneous mumbled. "So we just need to be more careful then and bring cloaks and stuff. I'm sure we'll be okay... also... is there anything that can be done for the king?"

"He probably already knows that will an attack soon," Arder mumbled. "The Zahan camp isn't too far from the palace itself, so Caalya and I could see both when we were on her pegasus. He has guards there already. I don't think anymore could be done for him."

"I see," the oracle grumbled. It sucked that no matter what he knew, he couldn't save everybody. He saw the king's death twice already and nothing in the past few days, so he truly couldn't be saved. He knew that a while ago, back when he was with King Jarid, but he just hoped that something different would happen.

"Anyway," Leigh said, clearing his throats. "I believe if anything does come up, we can deal with it. I have a feeling that we have a good group here and we can take care of ourselves. Make sure you are all packed by sunset – any necessities such as tents are available and you don't need to worry about making room for one. Also, if you need a travelling cloak, then come to me after this meeting. It's our best bet if making sure we're not immediately noticed. Otherwise, you're all dismissed."

* * *

Igneous took a step back in his room and admired his handy work. Thanks to Leigh, he managed to find a bag to put his stuff into and he finally decided on what to pack. He forewent the bedroll in preference of his many blankets that he managed to fold and pack into the bag. He stuffed pieces of jewelry in between his blankets and stuffed some more in between extra clothing. Leigh made it clear to him that he didn't have to pack food, a tent, or anything that Leigh deemed to be a necessity. Apparently, the priests and priestesses were preparing a lot in the last two days, finding tents, bedrolls, packing dried food, and preparing anything else they thought they needed. It left Igneous to pack whatever would make him comfortable according to Leigh. He spent so much time worrying about it so it felt amazing to have it done.

He managed to stuff a pillow and a comb into his bag before he prepared himself for travel. He tied his hair into a braid over his left shoulder, threw on his travelling cloak, and then dug out a pair of boots that he barely remembered existed. He could remember two years ago that Leigh insisted he should have boots but since Igneous never travelled far, he never ended up wearing them. However, he was pleased to find that they still fit with no problem. Or maybe he should worried that he didn't grow all that much in the last two years.

He took his bag outside, hoping he that wouldn't regret packing on his own, and was met with a flurry of activity. On one side, he could see Gerben and Garath packing a covered carriage with covered bundles. Gerben was the one to lift everything into the carriage while Garath was the one to organize it inside. Leigh was in the front, preparing a horse for the carriage. It was finally beginning to feel like he was leaving and he was beginning to dread it.

On the other side, he could see Caalya and Elena preparing horses. Igneous didn't even know that Elena had a horse. Not only that but Elena decided to shed the robes she wore as a sister in the temple into clothing that seemed much more useful for travelling. Her loose, purple hair was pulled back, tied near the end of her hair. She had a dark capelet with two chains in the front and detailing down the trim over top of a white corset with a pale, pink trim. Underneath it all was dark blue skirt, which may have been part of a dress, that only went to her knees. She wore leggings and boots that went to her knees, and finally, gloves that went up to her elbows.

"Igneous, hi!" she said as she gestured for him to come over. He put his bag down by the carriage and then walked over to Elena and her horse. "I want you to meet my horse, Orfeo."

"I didn't know you had a horse," he mumbled. He really was a pretty horse – he was grey with lighter coloured spots, or maybe he was white with grey spots. He never saw a horse quite like him. Orfeo seemed to know he was pretty as well, he had just that look in his eyes.

"Of course, I got here somehow," she said, petting Orfeo.

"From Fraedia? You seem to know about Fraedia, especially about the nobility."

"Yes, actually. I was even from a noble family. I came here to get out of a marriage I had no interest in. Don't get me wrong, I love doing what I do here but my parents thought it was the only other thing a women of my status could do and not harm the family reputation," she mumbled, rolling her dark eyes. "But it is what it is. I'd rather be on this trip then in stuck in a stupid arranged marriage! I think this could turn into some great... something... legendary!"

Igneous bit his lips. It made him feel uneasy because maybe it could be something like a fairytale, the ones with a hero and a villain with a long journey and the help of friends, the hero takes down the big evil villain at the end. He heard of such stories and saw recreations back in that village when the other children played. Saikur and Igneous were hardly ever included but they still watched and Igneous could remember being interested in their stories. However, he didn't want to play a hero. He didn't think he could, didn't think he was able, though it seemed like he had no choice but to get involved in something large scale thanks to the fact that he was the target of Zahan's interest.

At least Elena was excited about it.

Caalya suddenly came over, showing her book to both him and Elena. Her pegasus followed her, wings folded. Unlike Elena's horse, Caalya's pegasus was very dark in colour and this colouration was solid throughout, except the feathers on the wings were iridescent and he could see shades of purple depending on the light. Igneous, for the first time, could see Caalya's writing, which was rather neat with how fast he saw her write it. _You're making him nervous,_ she wrote.

"It's just the idea of it," Igneous answered. "The idea that this is going to be something really big is what's nerve wrecking. I don't think I'll ever be quite ready for it."

"I think you just need to start it, you know? Sitting here waiting for things to happen is what makes you anxious so being out on the road should make you feel better about the whole thing. I think despite the circumstances, travelling will be good for you. According to the records, you've more or less stayed in Dosia since you got here. There's so much more to Haelin than that! Imagine all the news things you can learn!"

Elena's excitement didn't catch on for him. He felt that maybe he should have been excited like she was but he still just had a strange feeling of doubt and dread. He wasn't worried about Zahan catching him but he was certainly worried about what they wanted from him. He was just the oracle – all he could do was tell their future, with or without some vague explanations. He was certainly helpful, but not worth attacking Dosia. He supposed the only way he could find out what they wanted was to be caught but that was just too dangerous for everybody else. Most of all, he really hated how the whole thing was pushing him out of the temple, a place he felt safe and happy in.

Caalya gave him a strange look but suddenly, somebody called out his name and Elena's. When he turned around, he saw Saikur coming over in his direction. In Saikur's left hand, he carried an axe that looked a little too big for somebody with his frame but at the same time, he didn't seem to have any trouble carrying it. He was a little nervous with Saikur around because everything was beginning to feel like an end. Saikur motioned with his hands for Igneous to come closer, so he did. Saikur led him away from the crowd to somewhere a little more private.

"How are you holding up?" Saikur asked, stabbing his axe into the ground.

"Alright, I guess," he mumbled. Saikur didn't look convinced.

"The last time you really travelled far was getting here from... you know," Saikur continued. "So, this has been home for the last six years or so. Every time you went out, you came back here at the end of the day. When you wake up tomorrow, you'll be in the middle of nowhere."

"Even if I wasn't feeling alright, what choice do I have? If I stay here while Zahan is looking for me, I'll just be endangering Dosia again just because I'm here. I can't just stay here. Even if I'm not okay, I can't stay."

"Igneous... you might not have a choice but it doesn't have to be uncomfortable. You deserve the best transition we can offer but if you're feeling bad about this, then I want to know so I can make it better," Saikur said with a frown. "I can tell you're in a... mood but you have to let us help you! I just want you to be happy and I hate to see you upset."

Igneous didn't immediately respond because he just didn't know what to say. He was feeling a lot of things but the only way he could really describe it was like he was in a bit of slump. He knew he was leaving but it didn't ever feel like he was until he had his packed bag outside. He was in a worse mood than when he first woke up, feeling nice and comfortable in the place that provided the best years of his life. It was sad to leave it and it was compiled by the fact that he still didn't exactly know why he had to, he didn't know why Zahan wanted him so badly.

"I guess... I'm just overwhelmed."

Saikur shrugged. "And I don't blame you. I just think it's important to tell others how you are feeling. That includes visions too, you never know what will end up being important."

Igneous liked to think that he could distinguish what was important and had to be shared from what didn't hurt if he kept it to himself. If he told his guardians everything he saw, then he was just wasting their time and possibly desensitizing them to his ability. It wasn't like he could control what he saw and could only prevent visions to some degree by keeping his hands to himself. He could see the death of a king or he could identify whether somebody's baby would be a girl or boy. He was the one who saw them, not Saikur, yet he didn't say anything to his friend.

He was just trying to help.

"Igneous?"

"I heard you," he answered softly. Saikur gave him a concerned looked.

"Anyway, if there is something you wanted to make you more comfortable, just say so."

"A fire tome," he said without thinking. Maybe he should have thought more about it but ever since Iniabi came, he couldn't completely let go of the idea of being able to use magic for himself. He liked the idea of interacting with fire and he figured that learning the basics of magic would keep his mind off of the Zahan troubles when he had free time.

"Okay, I know you said something about that a long time ago, but why suddenly bring it up again? Not to mention, I don't think we have the time..." Saikur mumbled.

"Well, it doesn't have to be now! Just when we pass a town or something... but the new guy, Iniabi can use tomes! I think if I asked and had a tome of my own, he could teach me. I think Caalya can use tomes too but I don't want to speak or write more than necessary just to teach me when you know... It just wouldn't hurt if I could defend myself."

Saikur managed to smile again. "That's true," he said simply. "And fire does suit you. Isn't it weird to make all these plans without asking Iniabi if he will actually do it, though? What if he says no?"

"Oh, I'm sure he'll help," Igneous said. "He seemed eager to help us even though he knew nothing of what was going on. He just saw that poster and he was on board so if I ask him to help me, I'm sure he would."

"Anyway, she probably get back to the main group before they think we're lost," Saikur said, patting Igneous on the shoulder. Again, Igneous felt a little odd with the contact – he couldn't really recall Saikur ever casually touching him like until recently. He had an idea of what was up with him, he saw it when Saikur let him touch his hand, but that didn't mean he was comfortable with the touching. He glared at him and Saikur backed off a little bit, letting Igneous lead the way back.

When he got there, the head priest was there. His face was wrinkled and his hair was turning grey but he could still stand surprisingly straight. Igneous didn't seem him often, probably because he trusted Igneous to do what he did on his own, nor did he know his name. Everybody just called him the head priest. He had a large bag with him and he gestured for Igneous to come over. He smiled when Igneous come over.

"Igneous, my child, how are you faring?" he asked.

"Alright, I suppose."

"Be careful with this bag, it's heavy," he said as he held out the bag to pass it over. Igneous grabbed it and immediately bent forward to adjust himself for the sudden weight. Eventually, he just let it fall to the ground instead of deciding to struggle with it. "I did warn you."

"What did you put in here? And how are you able to hold it?"

"This is a small fraction of the gold we stored here. Giving you too much may be more of a liability than an asset but do use what we have here to hire people. Judging by what Mayon and Vulcan have stated in their time, I have no doubt that this has something to do with The Barren, even if all we see is Zahan," the old man stated. "I want you to be careful but most of all, do not worry about us here. I sense troubling times ahead but we will be fine here."

Igneous looked at him curiously. Of course, he didn't see Dosia being attacked again but that didn't meant it wouldn't be. He could also see something in Fraedia, where he would be too far away to warn everybody. He may not be there but since Zahan's motives are unknown and they would still have a considerable amount of gold, they could still be targets. "How? Aren't I taking anybody who can fight here?"

"The people here are strong, Igneous. No matter what happens, the people of Adoss will not just bow to Zahan. They will fight back in the shadows – this is what I believe. You have your own duties to perform so do focus on those. Your gift will guide you."

He knew that it would. Igneous didn't know why he had such a gift or how it really worked but he already knew that he should be looking for a blue-haired manakete. He had no idea why she was important but he had a direction and a place to go.

"And if you ever run low on gold, your jewelry is made of gold so they will be easy to sell."

"I'll think about it," Igneous said halfheartedly. He would rather starve than part with any of his jewelry but he wasn't going to tell the head priest that. He didn't want to make an old man worry even more about with his attitude towards his jewelry. He was perhaps a little too vain for his own good but Igneous has no plans on trying to change that. It was basically the only difference between him and the other oracles that didn't seem to indicate an even earlier death for him.

"Anyway, Igneous, good luck! We'll be praying for your success here. Somebody will hear them."

"Thank you," Igneous said with a polite bow of his head. Then he tried to lift the bag of gold again, only to saved by Gerben. He lifted the bag with one hand, something that Igneous would expect from somebody who wore stone on their wrists and ankles.

"Iggy, let me handle the big, bad bag for you," he said with a playful smile. There was just something about Gerben that made Igneous relax a bit around him. His nature was contagious – even Leigh and Saikur seemed a little more relaxed and laid back when Gerben was around.

"Igneous! One more thing," the head priest said suddenly, making Igneous turn around to face him again. From his inner robes, he produced a pair of black, leather gloves. "I'm not sure if it will help but a barrier between your hands and the hands of an ally may prevent you from seeing their futures. It wasn't considered a problem in the temple but now that you will be out and about and meeting new people, it's polite to shake their hand."

Igneous put them on immediately. They stopped short a little past his wrists but covered his fingers completely and were surprisingly comfortable and fitted. "Thanks... I can't believe I never thought of that! I should test them out!" Two people jumped into his head – he rejected handshakes from both Iniabi and Garath and thankfully, Garath was close by. "Garath?"

The man smiled and held out his hand. "Put 'em them!" Igneous was never so excited to shake somebody's hand. He avoided it most of his life, ever since he connected hands to visions in his mind. He hesitated for a moment, his hand tightly grasping Garath's hand and he was pleased to find that there was no vision. The visions were never delayed – he instantly saw something the moment he touched somebody's hand. His mood was instantly lifted. He was upset when he was with Saikur but that quickly turned into giddiness. He let go with a cheer.

"Who knew it was so simple?" Igneous mumbled to himself when he calmed down just a little bit. He knew he shouldn't be so excited but he couldn't help himself. He just loved the fact that he could shake somebody's hand instead of appearing rude when he was just trying to let people have some privacy. He saw Saikur smiling at him.

"If only I thought of it sooner. It's been a while since you were so excited for something," the priest said.

"Especially for something that wasn't made of gold," Leigh mumbled. On any other day, Igneous wouldn't have let Leigh's teasing slide but the moment, nothing could bring him down. However, he did find the bag he packed and dug around in it until he produced a ring. Even with the gloves on, the ring slid onto his finger easily. Igneous didn't wear the rings as often as he wore something like his circlet and bracelets but he felt like he needed at least one of his rings on a glove at all time. He liked the contrast. Maybe he needed more black in his wardrobe.

"There's gold on it now," he said with a smirk.

"I think you own more jewelry than most of the dancers I travelled with," Mira mumbled, peering into his bag. Some of the jewelry was visible in his search for one of his rings, so he worked to make sure that they were once again, packed safely into his bag. Mira was around long enough to see him wear several different pieces – that was probably what she was talking about. "You just don't wear them all at once like we tend to."

"The jewelry and clothing is actually Iggy's favourite part about dancers," Gerben said with a proud smile.

"Alright, alright," Leigh mumbled. "Unless anybody forgot anything else, we'll be leaving now. Unfortunately, we'll be travelling through the night in order to put some distance between us and Zahan. Caalya, if you don't mind, we'll put you and your pegasus to work right away – scout out for anything that might be some trouble for us."

Igneous took a deep breath. It was time.

* * *

 _I'm a little nervous about characterizations of other people's OC. I probably will never feel quite like I'm getting everybody right, especially when more characters will be added.  
_

 _Anyway, I realized that with all of the planning, there is likely going to be more than a couple of references to ancient Greeks/Romans. Basically, if I'm stuck for a name, I'll probably be borrowing it from the Greeks or Romans. If you're interested, I'll be throwing these onto my profile so I can be as wordy as I want and keep my author notes cleaner!_


	8. Just Trust Me!

After three days of travelling, Igneous was beyond sore and they only reached Fraedia in the afternoon of the third day. He was too unaccustomed to the amount of walking that it actually took to travel get anywhere in Haelin. He tried to rest his feet as much as he could but even when his feet weren't sore when he woke up and prepared for travelling, his feet would ache something fierce after only a couple of hours on the road. He wasn't sure if he would ever get used to it, despite guarantees from all of the well-travelled members of their group. He couldn't help but to notice that they were all better toned than he was, except for maybe Mira and Reina.

The only thing he was happy about the travelling was that as promised, Saikur did find him a fire tome. He disappeared part way through the second day and caught up sometime after they set up camp with the tome in hand. Igneous was excited but since he was too tired to really look through it, Leigh made sure it went into their supply carriage.

On the third night when the sun fell for the evening and everybody was setting up their tents after tents and packed bags had been handed out by Leigh from the carriage, Igneous let his pack fall to the ground and he snuggled up with it. Considering it was mostly full of soft things, he was already rather comfortable with just that on the ground. He was too tired to move at any rate and he didn't feel like he could be bothered to set up his tent. He could fall asleep right there. He heard Saikur sigh before squatting beside him. Saikur shook him a little.

"Igneous," he mumbled. "Aren't you going to at least set up your blankets before you collapse so dramatically?"

"No. I'm fine like this. I'm too exhausted to do anything," he mumbled.

Mira came over and smile sympathetically. "But all of this excise is good for you! You should try and keep it up," she said. Igneous glared at her.

"The truth is, he had no reason to be fit like the rest of us," Saikur said with a shrug. "In other words, he's spoiled."

"Well, it wasn't like you guys were ever like 'Oh, Igneous you should go exercise more!' or anything like that," Igneous mumbled with a frown. It wasn't like he minded that the guardians never asked but it wasn't like they encouraged him so he wasn't exactly happy that Saikur called him spoiled. He only considered himself spoiled in that he had his gold jewelry and his blankets and his pillows were probably not cheap either. His jewelry even had expensive stones set in them, along with them being made of pure gold. He did work for it though – nobody else sat for hours looking through futures of random people. It was mentally exhausting work, just not physically.

"Would you have listened to us if we suggested it?" Saikur asked with a teasing smile. "You would have been too tired from your work or any day off you did get, you would have wanted to spend the day doing what you want and I doubt that includes exercise. It'll get better though, you just need to grin and bare it."

"Maybe I would have," Igneous grumbled with a shrug. Before Saikur could respond to that, he could see the overgrown jacket that Iniabi wore and instantly, Saikur bit his lips and whatever he was going to say died on his lips.

"How about we study that tome of your together then? You haven't opened it since you got it and it would be a shame to waste the time Saikur spent getting it for you," Iniabi mumbled. Iniabi must have seen the tome then. Oh well, at least he didn't have to ask. Igneous was dead tired but he found some energy that he didn't know he still had to get to his feet.

"I was going to wait until I was better rested," Igneous said but the other part of why he didn't ask was that he just didn't have the energy to ask Iniabi. His tent was usually too far away. Unfortunately, his fire tome was not on him but rather, it was still somewhere in that supply carriage. He grumbled as he stood up and continued to grumble as he walked to the carriage to look for it. He opened the flap and instantly felt his stomach drop. Leigh had it so perfectly organized and since Igneous couldn't immediately see the tome, it meant that he would probably ruin Leigh's organization and Leigh wouldn't be pleased. He didn't know if Leigh would be mad but Leigh would definitely not enjoy cleaning up after Igneous. He felt bad about it. Iniabi frowned when saw it but he also just stared at it for a while before going up to the carriage.

"Okay, memorized it," he muttered as he began to pull out some packed up boxes. Mira followed them there with an inquisitive look on her face as she watched Iniabi pull out various items to get deeper into the carriage.

"Is there a chance you could grab practice swords while you're in there?" she asked. "If Igneous is going to practice, then I will too! I'll ask Arder to help!"

"If I can find them," Iniabi mumbled before disappearing inside the carriage completely after making enough room for him to squeeze into. Igneous could hear items shifting around but before long, Iniabi returned holding two dull iron swords, though Igneous had no idea where they really came from. Did somebody ask for practice swords? Did the priests and priestesses think they needed practice swords? Either way, Iniabi didn't have his tome so as soon as Mira had a grip on the swords, he disappeared inside again, returning quickly with the tome. He hopped out and with the tome in Igneous' hands, he began to work on returning everything he took out to its original spot.

"Thank you, Iniabi!" Mira said in a singsong voice, which Igneous only seemed to have noticed just then. She did have a pretty voice and he couldn't help but to wonder if she could sing like Reina did. She skipped away, holding the two swords.

"It's no problem!" he answered as he shifted the last thing back into place. "Now for you, Igneous. We can go to my tent since yours isn't set up just yet."

Iniabi's tent was plain. He didn't seem to need to keep much with him, only the necessities. He supposed it just came with travelling. However, he noticed that Iniabi had a sword, which he kept under his jacket until he removed it from a belt on his hip to place on the tent floor beside his bedroll. The hilt was red and gold but that was all he could see while it was sheathed. He made no mention of the sword even while putting it down so he could sit, but Igneous had no doubt that he could use it. It just didn't seem like he wanted to use it at the moment and it baffled Igneous since it looked like a good blade. Iniabi also took out his own tomes, which were all some shade purple. Dark magic, he assumed.

"So what's first?" Igneous muttered as he opened his tome and looked inside. He could tell that the language was one that he didn't learn to read or write in but strangely, he was surprised to find that he did understand some of it. The more that he looked at the words, the more he understood it. He blinked in surprise. He didn't look that closely the first time he had it but he paid more attention when he was around Iniabi and he didn't know why he could understand any of it.

"To use a tome, you'll have to be able to read it out loud and understand what you're saying. You see, magic is the interaction with spirits – they respond to the commands given in the tome to produce different spells. Learning the language is most likely going to be the hardest thing for you to learn and get used to," Iniabi stated before he frowned, noticing Igneous' look for the first time. "Is something wrong?"

"I don't know why but I think I understand some of these words already," he said, putting the tome down flat so that Iniabi could read it upside down. He could point to words and translate them like it was part of some strange ingrained knowledge he never knew he had. He could read the phrases out loud when he translated it in his head. The only thing he couldn't do was pronounce the words in the original language. Only the translation popped into his head and when Iniabi encouraged to try to read them out loud, he stumbled over every syllable. He just couldn't form the words in his mouth but he knew what they meant. Iniabi couldn't hide the confusion.

"This your first time with a tome, right? Not even I could look at a tome and understand it my first time and I grew up around my father's tomes."

"I don't know why I know it though," Igneous said with a frown.

"I can only guess it has something to do with your abilities... No, more like the source of your abilities. You probably can do more than you realize but you wouldn't know because everything about you seems poorly understood. There has to be more to the oracles than just seeing a glimpse into the future," Iniabi muttered. Igneous could understand what he saying – the first and most prominent of his abilities occupied so much of his time that by the time he had a chance to try something new, he didn't feel like doing anything. He didn't do much or try a lot of different things, so there was no opportunity to learn about himself. It had to be the same for Vulcan as well and probably even Mayon but nobody seemed to know much of her prior to when she began saying what she saw.

"I never thought there could be more to it all," he mumbled slowly.

"But anyway, it seems that even though you understand the language, you certainly can't pronounce it. At least we have something to work on. But for now, maybe you should just get some rest," Iniabi offered. Igneous nodded.

"Yeah, I'm not sure if I could focus on this tonight," Igneous said. He wasn't sure what he felt about it all but he didn't want other people to worry and fuss over him. "Iniabi... could you keep this between us?"

Iniabi smiled a little bit as he closed the fire tome and handed it to Igneous. "Don't worry about it. What happens in this tent stays in this tent."

"Thanks, Iniabi," Igneous mumbled as he left his tent.

* * *

When they set their tents up again the next night, Igneous' foresight returned to remind him that it still existed and that it still worked fine while he was poking the campfire with a stick. _The environment was more or less the same – the tents were up, people were together by the fire, he could even seen the carriage in the background. It was almost like it was the present. However, it changed too fast for him to be able to focus on the details because before he knew it, Igneous was grabbed. Everything disappeared around him and the hands that held him were shadowy and cold._

 _He was saved. He hit the ground and when he turned around, he could see that the person who saved him was somebody he didn't know. He could see her silhouette and she was taller and curvier than Mira, Elena, or Reina, and he felt something almost predatory from her. She sneered before the vision disappeared._

He blinked and gazed around the fire pit again. Practically everybody was out of their tents. Mira was singing a song she remembered from her childhood, a lullaby she explained prior to singing it. She didn't seem to be the type to really need a reason to sing but it was a song she remembered and she was curious about whether or not anybody else knew it. Reina seemed to know the tune – she could hum it alongside with Mira but she didn't know the words. Igneous frowned. Even when Reina was surrounded and participating with others, she couldn't shake the mystery around her and with Igneous clued in on her heritage, she looked even lonelier.

It was funny, how Igneous and Reina could be lonely even when surrounded by people. In a way, they were only in company with their mutual feelings of loneliness and the fact that they were lonely because they were too different from everybody else. It was especially true when he thought about what he learned last night but he tried not to think about it too hard. It would hurt to mull over something he didn't understand and wasn't close to understanding.

Arder, who sat beside him, was the one that caught one that Igneous had seen something. Igneous' eyes also met Iniabi's, almost like he was being studied. It would be the first time Iniabi ever saw Igneous' abilities and it seemed to interest him. "What is it, Igneous?" Arder asked quietly.

"I think there will be an attack tonight," he said quietly. Arder nodded in understanding before raising his hand.

"Hey guys, Igneous saw something," he stated simply but loudly.

Igneous jumped, not expecting the attention to jump to him so suddenly. He didn't think Arder would go and just announce it everybody. "I think there will be some sort of attack tonight... either bandits or maybe slave traders. I didn't see which," Igneous muttered. He chose to omit the part where he was captured. There was a chance that he may not be captured but if he felt like it was going to happen, then he wasn't going to try too hard to fight it. It was risky but he had a feeling that if he was saved by that woman and it went almost like the vision did, then she may join them. He had to recreate that vision the best he could and that meant throwing himself into danger.

"Here, Igneous, keep this with you," Leigh muttered as he passed a knife past Saikur and into Igneous' hands. It was a small knife with a small blade, like it was supposed to be used to cut vegetables or something. It wouldn't do much against the big shadow but supposed it was better than nothing. He did feel a little safer with it. "Did you see anything else?"

"Not really," Igneous muttered quickly. He hoped he was good enough liar to escape suspicion but it didn't look like it was the case judging by the look he got from Leigh and Saikur. "It wasn't like I could see the attackers for who they were... they were all shadows. That's why I couldn't tell if they were traders or bandits but maybe you can't tell the difference by just looking at them."

"I can't imagine there's a big difference," Iniabi mumbled. "Their goals would be similar. Slave traders just deal in the business of people. It's not likely to be a difference that you can see on the outside but either way, we'll need to be careful. Your vision was a warning, we need to heed it."

"I'm surprised you took it so well," Igneous muttered. "There's usually some amount of doubt in my abilities from people that don't know me too well, yet you don't seem to have any doubt."

He shrugged. "I don't understand it but there's no reason for me to doubt you. It's not my place."

* * *

Igneous retreated into his tent for a moment, pulling his hair loose from his braid and putting his jewelry away. He wondered briefly if he was biting off more than he could with his gamble – how was he supposed to put himself in such a position to get caught and meet the figure without his guardians bailing him out? Did he need to be caught anyway? Maybe not, but he didn't want to risk changing the future from what he wanted. Maybe it wasn't too late to fill the guardians on the second half of his vision because he didn't know what to do. He needed to bounce ideas off of somebody.

The choice was taken away from him as he heard an angry shout. He turned around quickly in his tent and took a look outside, gently pushing the tent flap aside so that he could see through just a crack. He was only rewarded with a spray of blood as Saikur's axe sliced through the side of a slave trader. Iniabi had the right idea it seemed, they didn't look special. He bit his lips. He was gone for two seconds and the attack he saw was already in progress.

He must have looked for a second too long because he met eyes with one of the slave traders and he got to Igneous before anyone else could. Igneous grabbed the knife that he was given just as a hand pulled the tent flap aside. The man was large, with red, short cut hair and a wicked smile on his face. He wore plain clothing, which clearly saw better days as they were dirty and torn in places, but he did wear some leather over his chest for some protection.

Igneous took a deep breath. That was how it was going to go then. He brandished his knife but the trader laughed and smacked it out of his hands.

"You're going to sell pretty well," he said with a grin as he grabbed Igneous' wrist and dragged him out of the tent. Igneous didn't put up much of a fight, not only because the vision showed him being caught but also because the slave trader was a lot bigger than he was and he was also unarmed. Once he was out of the tent, his captor readjusted his grip so that his arm was around his chest and there was a dagger at his neck.

In a vision, it wasn't so terrifying to be held captive but when it was actually happening, Igneous doubted his entire plan. He was scared that something would go horribly wrong while he had a dagger at his neck and since the others were not in on his plan, then the chance of something going wrong increased. As it was though, it looked like they were doing well. Mira still seemed uncomfortable with the sword in her hands and she stuck to Arder, who could wield his sword like it was an extension of his arm. Gerben hadn't even bothered to transform and Elena was riding her horse with Reina on the back, looking apprehensive about something. Garath and Iniabi made a strange team, with Iniabi being strangely involved in the battle. Igneous thought that mages would need to be defended but Iniabi was more or less back-to-back with Garath. Caalya, on her pegasus, was chanting what looked like pink wind magic from the air where it was safe. Igneous couldn't really hear her but from what he could hear of her voice, it was hoarse from what he suspected was disuse.

"Igneous!" Leigh called out, driving his lance into a woman's back. So there were both male and female slave traders. Igneous supposed that everybody was desperate in Fraedia, even while being so close to Adoss.

"Put your weapons down or I'll bring him within an inch of his life. Many people put collars on their slaves anyway... they wouldn't see the scars." To make his point, he took the dagger and moved it across Igneous' neck. He could feel a little bit of blood and it stung, but thankfully, the wound wasn't deep. It was just a warning.

He could see the conflicted looks on his group's faces. Saikur threw his axe down immediately, no question about it, but not everybody was so sure and so quick to follow.

"You don't intend to let him go so why should we listen? Bring him within an inch of his life and we'll bring him back to health. We're not letting you leave with Igneous!" Leigh shouted.

"Leigh, don't upset them. As it is, he's the one with the upper hand. We're not in the position to make demands!" Saikur shouted back.

"Just drop your weapons!" Igneous shouted. "Trust me."

There was a moment of hesitation before everybody dropped their weapons and raised their hands. Fortunately, the group was not in danger of being captured themselves, as they managed to either kill or injure all the slave traders that Igneous' captor brought.

"Very good," he muttered. "But you are right. I'm not leaving empty handed, not when so many of my subordinates are dead. I need to make sure the trip was worth it."

"Damn it, I can't just do nothing while Igneous is in his hands," Garath growled. "I'm not letting anybody go with somebody like you! I leave nobody behind."

"Garath... just trust me," Igneous muttered again. He didn't know how else to phrase it. He was going to be okay, he knew he wasn't getting to get hurt, at least not too badly, but that was assuming that his captor didn't get suspicious. He was also assuming that the group had to behave and try not to save him.

Suddenly, he was let go and he hit the ground with a loud thud. He didn't look to see what happened, because he knew that this vision came through for him like he hoped, so he just crawled out of his grasp, not quite to safety but it was far enough from the slave trader. When he looked at the woman who saved him, he got the feel that his rescue was only a byproduct of her own goals – there was just something in her posture and position that told him that it was the man she wanted and she didn't care so much about rescuing somebody.

She was a curvy woman, he could see that when she turned around and her black cloak wasn't the only thing he could see from her, and her tight-fitting clothing only accentuated them. The clothing was all black – a tight long sleeved tunic, tight leggings, and boots that were almost indistinguishable from the leggings. She was a little taller than an average woman and Igneous could see pale grey hair poking out from under her cloak, where she had her hood pulled out and it almost obscured everything except for what looked to be a permanent pout on her face. She had the leader down on his knees with a knife at his throat.

"Who are you?" he barked. She merely grinned.

"Who I am... hardly matters," she responded, moving the knife down from his throat to dig into his shoulder. He screamed and Igneous looked away. The man had nothing nice in plan for Igneous and yet, Igneous wanted a quick death for him. He didn't want to watch somebody suffer. "What matters is who sent me... and I'm afraid you've sold the wrong person into slavery. Not that you would recognize him or anything, considering the sheer amount of people who lost their freedom to you."

She stuck the knife into the man's throat and pulled it to the side, then let his body fall forward.

"It's a shame, I like to drag it out longer. I like it when they feel the same sort of hopelessness and desperation that their victims faced, but it's not as fun with a mere slave trader," she said with an actual pout. "And not as much fun in front of an audience."

"Who are you?" Leigh asked, his voice unsure. He didn't seem to know what to make of her and quite frankly, neither did Igneous. She seemed proud of her work, like a cat who brought its kill to its owner. There was also the way she made everything she did look overly playful and flirtatious but Igneous could look past that if it meant that they had a powerful ally on their side. She was in a vision, she had to be helpful.

"My name is Amaryllis," she answered, her pout turning into a sneer. She turned her attention to Igneous. "And I presume you're the oracle." She placed a finger on her lip in amusement.

"How did you know?" Igneous asked, a little startled that she figured him out so fast. He was sure she never came to the temple, at least never been inside the temple, so that obviously meant she heard of him and could immediately connect the dots. Maybe trying to conceal himself would be harder than he thought.

"Oh please, I don't just stay in Fraedia. There are some jobs in Adoss too, believe it or not. Anybody who has even heard of you can recognize you. I can't say I know exactly why you're in Fraedia but heh, good luck." She shrugged and turned away.

"Wait, don't go!" Igneous shouted. "Maybe you would interested in coming along? You'll be paid, of course." When she turned her head to look back, he could tell she was considering it.

"Like a bodyguard?"

"Yeah..." he answered as he stood up and dusted himself off.

"Well, I guess that would be a welcome break from what I've been getting myself into," she said, her smirk returning. "The gold better be good though. Who knows what contracts I'll be missing following you around Haelin? At least there's a lot of men here." She licked her lips, then murmured something under her breath.

"Welcome to the team, then," Igneous muttered as he held out his hand. He still didn't know what to make of her but he was determined to find out. She was too interesting for him to ignore. Instead of shaking his hand, she lowered the hood on her head and shook her hair loose. Her cat-like eyes were a pretty green colour and there was a distinct playfulness to them.

"No problem, handsome."

He wasn't used to anybody calling him that. There were some people who came for a reading and complimented his appearance but they were few and far in between because most people who approached him for a reading seemed nervous. He could understand why – he wasn't the oracle of death for nothing.

"Hey Igneous, could we talk to you for a moment?" Leigh asked suddenly. He merely nodded and Leigh gestured to follow him. Saikur joined them and they went outside of their camp. "Igneous, when you told us that vision you had earlier, did you omit information?" Oh, that. They must have figured that if he was telling everybody to trust him, then he had another vision... or that he didn't tell them the full vision the first time. Saikur and Leigh would know.

"Igneous, we need to know about things like this. We didn't you tell us there was more?"

"Because I was afraid if I didn't go the way I saw it, then Amaryllis wouldn't be in the position to join us. We need mercenaries – your words, Saikur. I thought that if you guys knew, then that future would be destroyed and I won't know the new one. I thought about telling you but then I was captured so I couldn't."

Saikur frowned at him. "We could have made it work-"

"Okay, I know you two are trying to help but the truth is, I'm not going to tell you everything I see," Igneous muttered, rolling his eyes. Leigh sighed.

"How are we supposed to best protect you if we don't know things like this? Today could have gone in a very different direction, Igneous, you're right about that. It could have ended with you being seriously injured or dead. We can't keep risking your life like that."

"You could trust me a bit more!" He felt himself getting riled up and he didn't know why. It shouldn't be a big deal, his friends were just worried, but he was getting frustrated. "You guys will never understand what it's like to have the gift that I do. Heck, the only people who could understand are dead! There isn't one person here who can tell me why I'm the one who has it or why it exists at all! You guys seeing it work through me isn't the same thing as when I see it! Don't tell me what to do with my visions when you guys only the know the basics of how it works. Maybe I can't always tell what important or not but I have a better idea than you guys do!"

"Igneous-" Saikur started but Igneous was too riled up to listen to him.

"No... just leave me alone!" He turned and travelled back to the campsite. He went into this tent and he was aware of Gerben moving in front of his tent but Gerben didn't enter. He must have just decided to stand guard for him. He wasn't the kind to get involved with in the same problems that Leigh and Saikur did – he was more than eager to help with problems that he could use his strength to solve but when it came to emotional problems, he just let people come to him. Igneous didn't think he was trying to make sure Leigh and Saikur left him alone but he Igneous figured he must have felt bad that Igneous was captured and injured on his watch before. Gerben must have just felt like he wasn't doing enough to keep him safe and so he was hanging around his tent.

Either way, Igneous appreciated it.

He didn't realize how much his gift did bother him until he was in his tent alone thinking about it. It was such a major part of his life but he hardly understood it. He had the visions long before he learned how to voice what he saw. Maybe he had them for so long that he was too young to even remember them! It delayed his early life and interfered with his present life – he spent far too long of his day reading people or thinking about what he saw. There were also the moments where he saw things while walking and there was more than one time that it caused him to trip. The fact that he could see a possible future was not all there was to him also irked him because it would always be a reminder that he knew nothing about himself.

And then there was all the grief he felt knowing that he had quite a different reputation from the other oracles. He didn't know what it meant for him – he had a feeling it might result in an even earlier death for him, or rather, earlier than the others. He had enough in common with the other oracles that he could use how they were as a base but he was also so different that the priests that knew Vulcan raised an eyebrow at him. He had a hard time believing that Vulcan and Mayon were so similar that he was the weird one.

Maybe the blue-haired manakete knew something. Maybe that's why he had to go see her. Otherwise, he had no idea what to do. He sighed and hid himself under his blankets. It was going to be a tough night.

* * *

 _So Mira is supposed to be a dancer, the kind in Awakening that can use swords, but I'm not entirely sure how to incorporate that into battle. If you guys have ideas, let me know. The person who submitted her wanted her to be able to improve but she should also... you know, dance._

 _Also, it's probably going to be a character a chapter for a while because there are so many of them! And people submit characters to be able to see them in action, so I hope I'm doing you guys some justice in that department._


	9. Unwelcomed by the Forest

Darren found himself irritated. He never spent so much time away from home and he was travelling knowing that his father was probably dead and he wasn't there when he breathed his last. He couldn't stand the thought that when he was going home, whenever that was, he would be ushered in as the new king before he could recover from the fact that it would be the first time in Adoss since his father passed. He was sure his sister was alright and she would behave for her own sake in the very least, but there would always be doubt in his mind about whether or not Lauren was truly safe with the enemy. It was too late to do anything about that though. He was also really beginning to get tired of Fraedia and though they ran into little trouble in terms of the bandits and slave traders, he just didn't feel comfortable in it.

Fraedia seemed to be a mess of a country. From the towns and villages that they passed, it seemed that poverty was rampant. Perhaps that was why the bandit and slave trader problem was so bad in the first place – people were just desperate and they were willing to do anything they had to. It was the first time he really saw such wide-spread poverty before. He been around Adoss before and while there was some disparity between the classes, people could still work for a living and didn't often resort to the things that Fraedians did. Part of that reason was because... damn it, it always went back to Igneous.

The people in charge of the temple always charged for Igneous' services at the door, so even if Igneous wanted to do a free reading, he couldn't offer one unless he was outside of the temple for whatever reason. When a noble paid for a reading, and why they would was beyond Darren, the gold they paid went back to the temple's duty to help those in need, such as those in poverty. Taxes paid by the middle to high class also helped with a poor to a small extent but since the temple proceeds did so well, only a small percentage of taxes actually went to the poor and most of it got spent elsewhere. He supposed what hurt the Fraedian people the most was the lack of care from their king, Eradus, and such attitudes spread to the nobility or at least that was the situation explained to him by his father.

In fact, Darren had no doubts that the nobility was mostly afraid of each other, especially the closer the nobles were to the king. The nobles had the soldiers at their disposal so that they could be protected from other nobles vying for their position but they could disguise it as protecting themselves from bandits.

They had to stop to let the horses rest but as they did so, they decided to take stock of what supplies they had. They were low on dried food. Their tents and bedrolls were still in good shape but Darren was definitely worried about the lack of food. At least Fraedia, being close to Vedia, did have some prominent rivers, so it wouldn't be hard to find more fresh water.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled when he saw just how low on dried food they were. "I shouldn't have rushed everybody back in Adoss."

"It's fine... I doubt your rushing was what caused this. I believe I was the one who said our supplies looked good," Fara muttered. "I didn't account for losing a day in the forest and barely moving."

"Yeah, the forests are thick here," Ajax said with a sigh. "It just looks like shelter for criminals. I know you wanted to avoid the border that Fraedia shares with The Barren but it looks like we're damned if we do and damned if we don't."

Darren did want to avoid the border because he didn't feel like they were equipped to deal with the Zahan army. He was aware that there was an attack in Dosia but if they were taken care of by the oracle's guardians and some citizens from what he heard, then Zahan obviously sent their weakest. However, it wasn't hard for Zahan to send their strongest by cutting through The Barren to get to any country on Haelin quickly. Heck, there was a good chance they were in The Barren already, for whatever reason, making it even more dangerous for him to be close to the border. However, he couldn't keep getting lost in the forest either.

"What we need is an expert," Darren mumbled. "Surely, if we hired one of these people from the villages, they could guide us through the forest. We can probably buy more food while we're at it."

"Do you think they would? Ajax made a good point when he said the forests look like shelter... I do think we need to buy more food though. It might stimulate their economy a bit," Fara offered.

"It would probably get stolen somehow but sure, let's go with that. Where was the last village we saw?" Darren mumbled.

"Probably half a day back," Ajax answered. "I don't think we have to go back though. We still have a couple of days left before we run out of food so surely, we will be able to find another village in that time frame if we avoid the forests."

"I guess that's the best we can do for now," Darren mumbled. He was really looking forward to getting to Vedia and getting out of the Fraedia once and for all. At least Vedia had a real military that was designed to protect their country and their people – even if the military was primarily made of their navy. Darren sighed and approached his horse, jumping up onto his back. "Let's go then. The horses should be good."

* * *

It was tempting to go through the next forest when they found it while looking for a village. It didn't seem to be like the large one they got lost in previously and there was an actual path going in. "Well, should we?" Darren asked as he approached the first on his horse. Ajax rode up beside him, his face apprehensive. "I say a path is a good sign."

"It's your choice," Fara muttered. "A path would make it trickier to get lost but I'm still worried that we haven't met any sort of trouble. We've been here long enough to have seen something by now."

"That's what I'm worried about too..." Ajax mumbled. "It might not take that much longer to go around."

Darren considered his options. Fara and Ajax were probably right but there was a certain charm to the forest. His last experience in the forest annoyed him but maybe this forest would be a welcome improvement. "I think we're going through!"

Ajax mumbled something that Darren couldn't hear but he earned a strange look from Fara. He wondered if he made the wrong choice but he didn't want to back down on decision like that. It wasn't a good thing for a prince to look like he couldn't make decisions when he was supposed to be in charge of a country. He guided his horse into the forest and his two companions followed him in.

The forest didn't look much different from the last one – it was pretty shady and it felt a little cooler when they weren't in the sun. It was actually kind of nice. However, things went wrong when the winding path grew narrow before abruptly disappearing into grass. There was a rustling in the trees but there wasn't much of a breeze, even out in the open, so it was a little out of place in a forest. He looked up and Darren was at first relieved to see a small squirrel in the tree. It looked at him for a moment before it dropped a nut of some sort onto his face but Darren was pretty damn sure that the squirrel just hated him and threw the darn thing at him.

"Damn squirrel," he mumbled as he rubbed his forehead. "It threw a nut at me!"

"I don't think it threw it at you," Fara muttered. "Maybe you just startled it."

"He startled me," Darren growled.

"Darren, look out!" Ajax shouted, jumping off his horse and drawing a weapon that he kept on his horse's side. Darren jumped too, just in time to dodge a hand axe that dug itself into the tree that was beside him. The squirrel might have hated him but he wasn't the only one.

"Thanks, Ajax," Darren mumbled as he recovered his wits. Bandits jumped from the trees, landing on the ground around them. He couldn't help but to wonder just how long they were being followed. Why didn't they notice them? Darren took out his lance and stabbed a bandit who tried to come from behind him, only to narrowly escape the large swing of an axe.

"Did you guys think you could parade around here with your shiny armour?" one of the bandits asked. Darren was surprised to see it was a woman and a rather slim one at that. She was heavily scarred, with dark hair that she pulled back into a pony tail and dark coloured eyes. Perhaps she was the leader of them all.

"So they decided to wait and regroup," Fara growled as buried her lance into a large man. She managed to tear it out just in time to strike down another bandit that threatened to kill her.

"All of us low-class outcasts need to stick together, especially when you guys look so rich," the woman from before said with a laugh. She was fast and that was probably why she survived for so long. Darren was fast too but he was unfamiliar with fighting on terrain that wasn't flat. The forest had tree roots, uneven slopes, and bushes to contend with, especially with no path, all while he had to focus on dodging and killing bandits before they killed him. The bandits they were against were no joke – they seemed to attack in pairs, except for who he guessed to be the leader, so that every attack they did followed up with each other. Even when one of them died, the other still pulled through for their attack.

They were also much better adjusted to the forest than any of them were. Not only were they hiding in the trees but they also kept themselves hidden amongst the trees on the ground because no matter how many they put down, another bandit always took the place of one who died. Darren bit his lips as the woman from before came up on him with another female at her side, this one looking a lot bigger than most women Darren knew. He barely dodged their attacks, and he also managed to dig his lance into the bigger woman's gut.

"Darren!" Fara shouted suddenly. Darren moved when she screamed but he still felt a deep, sharp pain in his shoulder. He hissed in pain as he was pushed to the ground from behind, making his weapon fell from his hands. "Hold on!"

Darren rolled out of the way and jumped to his feet, his shoulder making him grunt in pain again. He didn't have his lance but he swiped a lance from a dead bandit and brought it up just in time to block a blow meant for his head.

Fara and Ajax were both overwhelmed. It was clear that they were also in the same predicament he found himself in – the terrain was unfamiliar and the bandits were cunning. He didn't get much time to even come up with a plan because all his head could focus on was the fact that he needed to survive. He didn't see anymore reinforcements from the edge of the forest but that hardly meant much when there was so many of them still close.

On top of it all, the wound on his shoulder was growing more aggravated by the constant moving he had to do. He stepped back and hissed in pain as pain erupted from his ankle – he must have stepped down on it incorrectly. It wasn't the first time he did something to his ankle by doing something relatively simple and he doubted it was the last. The man grinned like he knew and sent the axe his way. Darren dove for the ground and grabbed his opponent's ankle, pulling him to the ground with him. He grabbed a lance and stabbed the man in the gut just as Fara ran over to him.

"We need to stay together," she mumbled as she protectively stood over him. With a nod, Darren held his breath and gritted his teeth as he forced himself to his feet and had to place some weight on it. By the time he was back on his feet, he was in the most pain he could ever recall, but Ajax made it to their position. He was covered in light cuts but his armour managed to take the brunt of their attacks, if all the scratches were of any indication.

"I see that the armour isn't for show." The leader was still alive and doing quite well. She motioned for the bandits to stop. There were still a lot left, probably at least twenty but he trusted that Ajax and Fara could handle it while he stayed off his bad ankle. "Who are you guys anyway? Mercenaries? Most can't afford armour like that."

"It doesn't mater," Darren mumbled. Damn, everything hurt.

"Ah well, I suppose it doesn't," she said, holding her hand up as if to motion for attack. Ajax tensed as he brought his weapon into position. Just before she could call an attack, a shadow jumped in front of them, a sword in hand. He was from covered head to toe in black armour, which was decorated with a gold trim. There was not one bit of flesh that could be seen and even the underarmour was barely visible. The armour itself was something that Darren never really saw before and he could only describe it as dragon-like. The pauldorns were oversized and he could still see his covered shoulders under the armour while his helmet seemed to have wings that were mostly flat but flared at the ends. The front also came to a point like a horn. At his side, he had two swords, one in a black and gold sheath .

"You guys are seriously under prepared for a battle in a Fraedian forest." Darren assumed that it was a male he was talking to because the voice was masculine and it was obvious even while being somewhat distorted by the helmet. "I expect nothing else from those wearing Adoss' colours. If you want to win, hire somebody from Fraedia. You'll do better."

"If you help us win, you're hired," Darren hissed. The quips about Adoss were highly unnecessary but he was in too much pain to really care about that at the moment. He was suffering from blood loss and what seemed to be a twisted ankle so his patriotism wasn't the highest priority.

"Pfft, easy," the man murmured, withdrawing a curved sabre from his hip. Darren could see a red line from the guard to the tip of the blade.

"You're welcomed to try," the leader growled, charging at armoured man with her sword. Despite all of his armour, he was even quicker. He caught the leader by the shoulder and pushed the sabre through her stomach, twisting it before pulling it out, then he used the moment of confusion caused by her death to take down the nearby bandits. Fara stayed by his side while Ajax joined in on the battle. The bandits weren't confused anymore but their morale was clearly damaged since the tide of the battles suddenly turned against them.

For a moment, Darren could sit and breathe. Fara took the opportunity to begin inspecting the wound he had on his shoulder. It didn't seem to take long for Ajax and their new ally to finish clearing what bandits remained to fight, as some threw their weapons down and fled. Neither one of them bothered to go after those who fled – it just wasn't worth their time. When it was all said and done, Fara was the first to speak.

"What did you mean when you said it was expected of us?" she demanded.

"Adoss knows nothing of battle," he stated simply like it was something everybody knew or should have known. If Darren could see his face, he imagined that he would be wearing a smug look. "Adoss entertains the idea of training and having a military but all it's just a waste of time and money. The soldiers they pump out aren't capable of defending anybody because they never needed to defend anybody. I head that Zahan attacked you guys first and if that's true, all I can say if that I'm not surprised. Adoss is easy picking."

"You know nothing of Adoss!" Fara growled.

"I saw all I needed to see here," he said, sounding rather amused. He turned his attention to Darren. "Now, you said you would hire me if we won. What sort of price are we speaking?"

"You name it," Darren muttered. He didn't have the energy to argue. "We're going to Vedia or maybe even Silcyia. We need to amass some numbers to help take back Adoss. I can't exactly pay you until Adoss is free again and I have access to the gold there."

"And you guys nearly fell here," he muttered sarcastically. "I'd say twenty thousand would be worth my time. I'm assuming it's all gold minted in Adoss."

"Of course," Darren muttered. Twenty thousand did sound a little expensive for one person but Darren could certainly see that the man could back his talk with real skill and Darren's contract needed to be better than any contracts he could be missing. He was asking for a lot of the man's time. "It's a deal then. What's your name?"

"You may call me Zahreen."

"I'm Fara, this is Ajax, and this is Prince Darren."

"Oh, you guys were probably trying to be serious then with this fight," he said with a chuckle. "You are supposed to be the best then. Oops on your part, Darren."

"Oh shut it, you!"

Zahreen stopped chuckling and then shook his head. "Don't act like there are nice people in Fraedia that will do the same work I can. They just don't exist. You're only mad because you know I'm right. You haven't even tried to argue against me, Fara! Your little princey there already hired me but I can also just walk away now and I have no doubt I'll stumble over your bodies in a week while doing another job. You need me but I don't really need you. Your choice."

"Fara, just try not to argue with him. I don't have any energy to listen to it!" Darren muttered. He was beginning to feel light headed. Fara huffed but she found the horses and she retrieved their supplies. He sat patiently as Fara and Ajax treated his wounds but he watched Zahreen the entire time. He was a strange man. He wasn't afraid to speak his negative opinions and he didn't seem to care if his words struck a nerve and they struck a nerve because Darren couldn't exactly argue with him. Zahreen probably knew it and it probably only entertained him further, giving him more fuel for his words. The more they talked, the more flaws Zahreen was able to find and weaponize.

Oh well. Darren couldn't afford to care about the personalities of the people he hired. Adoss needed skill and Zahreen certainly had it. He couldn't let Zahreen get to him and Fara shouldn't let him under her skin. Ajax was the one only who didn't give their new ally another chance to be a jerk and it was probably because Ajax must have known nothing good would come from it. He just let his axe do the talking and Zahreen a had yet to make a personal attack against him. In this regard, Ajax seemed almost older than he truly was.

Zahreen chuckled a little bit more before motioning for everybody to follow him. "Anyway, we should get getting. Bandits don't disappear at night and I would rather not lose an employer."

Darren merely nodded. He was ready to get out of the forest anyway.

* * *

While camping in a middle of a clearing, Darren noticed that Zahreen was gone. He couldn't see him on the edges of their camp, not that his ankle would let him really look further than yet, and he wasn't in any of the tents they set up which he ended up crawling to. It was weird for somebody they hired to be gone so soon and without a word at that.

He was pissed.

Sure, it wasn't like any coins had actually moved. Zahreen was paid yet so he was still allowed to leave because he was the one who had to trust Darren and not the other way around. However, for somebody who talked so much about the state of Adoss' military, he sure ended up disappearing like a coward in the end. It made his blood boil.

"Who hell does he think he is? I only tolerated his over-the-top criticism because I thought I was going to gain a skilled ally! Why the fuck did he go fuck off?" he mumbled as he settled into a spot by the fire that Ajax had made before it got too dark to make one. Ajax also found a roll of bandages and tossed it to Darren so he could further bind his bad ankle. Zaheen rushed them out of the forest since the clearings were apparently safer, so Darren never really had the chance to properly bind his ankle properly. It would at least prevent his ankle from getting worse.

"Darren, that sort of language is not becoming of a prince," Fara mumbled as she dug out their dried food for the evening. "But it's strange that he would leave. I wanted a chance to prove myself... prove that Adoss doesn't fool around with training."

"It's not like actual Fraedian soldiers can be so much better," Ajax mumbled with a shrug. "He keeps saying he's comparing us to bandits but it's more likely that he's comparing us to soldiers in Silycia and in that case, everybody is terrible."

"Those are rumoured to be the best in Haelin, no?" Fara asked. Darren nodded.

"From what I heard from my Father, Silycian training is legendary but not everybody gets so far because the desert can be so brutal. Apparently, the first test is getting to a trainer," Darren answered with a shrug.

"You can say that," Zahreen said, suddenly appearing behind Darren with his arms folded awkwardly in front of his chest because of all the armour. He tried not to jump – he didn't to appear any weaker in front of him. "You know that yet still have the lofty goal of possibly going there? I gave you the benefit of doubt too!"

"Where the heck did you go? I thought you ran away," Darren mumbled with a growl.

"There's nothing in Fraedia that scares me, so there is no point in running. I just had some matters to take care of alone."

It crossed Darren's mind that maybe Zahreen was really keen on keeping his armour on for some strange reason. Wasn't armour just for protection from sharp, metal objects during battle? What was the point in keeping it on all the time? What if it needed repair? And wasn't stepping away all the time super inconvenient? Just thinking about the fact that somebody's obsession went so far ended up annoying Darren. What was so damn important about it?

Maybe he was just horribly disfigured and was too ashamed of himself to see anybody without his armour on. That might explain his horrible attitude.

He must have had a look on his face because he Zahreen didn't take his eyes off of him, or at least the front of his helmet was pointed at him.

"But if you are serious about going there, then I have no problem taking you," Zahreen said suddenly as he withdrew one his blades, the curve sabre again, and turned it to Darren. "But only if you are serious... if you want to go because some stupid romanticized image, then I'll feed you to the scavengers there. I won't let you disgrace Silycia."

"What's your problem all of a sudden?" Darren growled, despite the sword. He knew that nothing would happen to him because he needed to be alive if gold was going to be moved around. Zahreen immediately put his sword back to his hip and turned away from him.

"Doing your best dog impression, I see," Zahreen said with a chuckle. "Do you always do that? You have a terrible attitude, acting all high and mighty when somebody dares say anything but praise for you. Don't you have bigger issues to focus on than somebody like me?"

"Zahreen, that's enough," Fara said in the calmest voice she could muster. Zahreen had her on edge it seemed. She had something to prove to him when she shouldn't even bother but she did because anyway because maybe, she ultimately had something to prove to herself. Zahreen shook her world, she wasn't as good as a soldier as she thought she was when the fighting environment was controlled and consistent. "And why do you insist on insulting us every chance you get?"

"Why not?"

Darren rolled his eyes. He was bothered by him too but he found himself a lot calmer than he was earlier, since it was clear that Zahreen wasn't leaving after all he said. When he was around, there was somebody to hold responsible for those words so he felt a strange calm with his return. However, he rubbed Darren the same way Igneous did, in that Darren had to admit that they weren't just running their mouths and were onto something but there was something in him that still had trouble accepting that. The oracle was much kinder than Zahreen was but he didn't like what either of them had to say. It was almost easier to accept Zahreen's words because his argument was at least logical but who knows where Igneous was pulling his ideas from?

He was just too stubborn, he supposed.

"So you were trained in Silcyia then," Ajax mumbled to himself, chewing on a piece of dried fruit. "I know the Fraedian army wouldn't train any better than the Adoss army, and you were obviously better than the presumably self-trained bandits. It appears that if there was one thing you do care about, it was the time spent in Silcyia."

"You could say that."

Darren really hated how he couldn't see the man's face.

"But even if you didn't want to take us, you would have to follow us either way, no?" Ajax asked, a ghost of a smirk playing on his lips. "Or is there a point where we just become too much trouble?"

"Heh, that won't happen."

"I think I'm going to rest now," Darren mumbled as he stood up and bit the inside of his cheeks to prevent himself from commenting on the pain that erupted from applying any weight to his bad ankle. He made it to his tent quickly and practically collapsed into his bedroll. He fell asleep almost immediately.

* * *

Asteria called for a meeting as soon as a messenger from Adoss arrived, saying that Demitri accomplished what he sent to do and was awaiting for further orders. The meeting was late at night but it seemed as though everybody she wanted to invite was awake anyway. She tried to invite Erin but she seemed so wrapped up in her studies that she didn't notice that Asteria had approached and when she saw how busy Erin was, she decided not to bother her. She needed whatever information Erin could gather and their time in The Barren was almost up, so she wanted Erin to dedicate whatever time she could to last minute researching. However, the rest of the generals showed up no problem.

She picked her generals on merit – they had something that would advance her cause, such as loyalty, leadership, tactics, or immense strength and power with their chosen weapons. Some of them were from noble birth, which certainly helped because those picked to be in the military used their military might to strength their family's noble status but there were others who she never heard of previously.

They met in the centre, where where the dip was. The first one to show up was Russell. He was one of the ones she never heard of until everybody began talking about him and he was hired shortly after all. He was a little over six feet tall, certainly not the tallest in the army but his very muscular frame made him seem taller somehow like his height was better measured with intimidation. Everything about him seemed intimidating one way or another – his short, wavy hair and his beard reminded her of the colour of blood, his tanned skin was marred with new and old scars everywhere including one over his left eye, and he wore animal skins, one of some sort of cat around his shoulders and one of a black wolf around his waist. His clothing otherwise consisted of red woollen pants with a leather belt, a black breast plate with pauldrons, and he had armour on his wrists, thighs, and his shins. He grinned at her with his sightly pointed teeth but his yellow eyes were the most noticeable thing about him in the dark night.

The next person to arrive was somebody by the name of Weinstrad, whose family lost most of their noble status when Asteria's father determined that his father was a traitor but since she was not her father and he was not his father, she didn't hold it against him. He was not highly thought of when it came to some of the older grumps in the military or in her council – which she only kept as a formality and she largely ignored what they had to say – but she admired his loyalty and his tactical mind above all else. He was as tall as Russell with dark hair that he kept slicked back, deep purple eyes, and he had a muscular build, which was still somewhat visible under his dark knight armour. He had two scars on his face, one on the right side of his lips and the other one his left cheek.

The last to arrive were two that always seemed to travel together. One was a white haired ursurine who only arrived with her human friend a few days ago as they were gathering materials elsewhere. The ursurine was a large woman, who was slightly taller than Russelll but she wasn't as bulky as Asteria expected from an ursurine. She kept her hair short with the front locks just touching her shoulders, her brown eyes were sharp, and she wore simple black clothing that just left the forearms bare. Finally, she wore the stone cuffs on her wrists and ankles. Asteria remembered her name being Daphne, her at least she was being called Daphne. Daphne wasn't a name that screamed ursurine.

Her friend looked to be the polar opposite. She had bright pink hair, tied up into two long pigtails and she carried a constant smirk on her face. She wore a pink shirt, black shorts, and long leather boots that went to her knees. Her name was Azalea, or in a similar case to Daphne, didn't reveal her given name. She always carried her bow on her.

"So what's going on?" Azalea asked curtly.

"King Jarid is dead, so I'll be going to Adoss and taking control of the troops there. I want the rest of you to go to Fraedia, but I don't want you guys to go without a plan," Asteria mumbled. "If you have any ideas, I'd like to hear them now."

"So I'm assuming you want the king of Fraedia dead as well?" Weinstrad asked, cracking a small but still disturbing smirk. He was one of the ones Asteria was a little concerned about – he heard quite a few rumours about him and none of them reflected well on the state of his sanity. If any of the rumours held up, he was very bloodthirsty but it wasn't the kind of thirst that could quenched by anybody's dead body. It was rumoured he had a thing for manakete victims.

"We should just run in and kill all of the nobles who entertain the idea of royalty. Fraedia is pretty fucked up, we can take them all easily," Russell said with a small chuckled. Weinstrad was not the only bloodthirsty one but Russell wasn't picky about who he had to kill. He seemed content so long as his axe found flesh.

"I like your style, Russell, but we could be a bit more orderly than that," Weinstrad mumbled. "I suppose if we don't kill those nobles though, then killing the first king wouldn't amount to much. Any of them could try to fill the vacancy."

"If we can get them all in one place, then I could handle it. I know quite a few poisons that are both tasteless and colourless," Azalea said with a smile.

Russell rolled his eyes. "Poison? You're overestimating the military. I can take them if the rest of you won't. Kill the royal family first and anyone else who bothers to show up will die with them – it should be fun. The rest of you can find the person Asteria wants so badly."

Asteria crossed her arms and seized Russell up again. "If you can do it, then by all means, impress me," she stated. Russell was all kinds of crazy and maybe she should reign in her army more, but Russell looked so confident. It was like he had cabin fever, so the best way for him to calm down even a little was to stretch his legs. Weinstrad gave her an odd look, like he was questioning her ability. She didn't blame him – she was obviously a little crazy herself to listen to Russell but it was for the good of her kingdom. With no other rulers, then she could redefine the borders that made up Zahan. She could take the fertile land Zahan needed and deserved from Adoss, who lived too comfortably for her liking.

"You're sure he can handle it? It's reckless to charge in there."

"Fraedia's messed up, Russell is right there and I think he knows that more than most of us. I'll leave the troops he's charge of with him – they've all got the same attitude anyway, so a good battle should keep them calm. Besides, you and Azalea are better for locating the runaway prince and the oracle anyway. They are more of a priority to me than the fall of the Fraedian king."

Weinstrad still looked like he had something to say but then he must have decided against it. Suddenly, he turned to Azalea. "I suppose we should talk privately then... and if you got slow acting poisons, I'd love to see them in action."

Azalea grinned back.

* * *

 _I have the occasional OC that takes a small trait from me - in this case, Darren shares my curse of crappy joints! I hurt my ankle a few times by just stepping down on it 'wrong' and I have no idea what the difference between a 'wrong' step and right step is._

 _Daphne and Azalea were kind of last minute additions when I realized I didn't have have enough enemy generals. Both of them are named after plants that have poisonous parts. Of course, Daphne is also a name in Greek mythology, so you can see the new additions of that on m profile if you're interested._

 _Weinstrad, Russell, Zahreen and Ajax are all submitted characters._


	10. That Burning Feeling

Amaryllis didn't led them straight to the closest settlement. Her way was long and convoluted, or at least that was what Igneous' feet told him, but when she explained it, it made sense. One, there wasn't a whole let to be had in the small villages and if bandits noticed travellers in the small villages, it could bring them even more harm than usual. More harm than usual... he never thought he would say something like that. Two, she said forests were a waste of time – if you encountered bandits, fighting them and going on with your way wasn't much faster than just going around and avoiding a battle in the first place. Three, she was looking to be payed for her recent kill and she was only going to get paid in a particular meeting place.

She didn't give a fourth reason but Igneous would insist on its existence. She seemed to like the fact that people were depending on her for directions and she was milking it for all it was worth. She liked to be in the front, to sway her hips more than they needed to be and Igneous found it more interesting to stare at his feet when she did that. He just wasn't interested and didn't want to be caught looking so the others could comment on it.

He did catch Elena starring at her quite often though. It helped that Orfeo was an intelligent horse and often steered himself, so Elena had the time to stare at Amaryllis and she seemed to enjoy it, judging by the look on her face. She had a dreamy look on her face and the slightest hint of a blush.

He was happy when they reached the city she was aiming for.

"I have to go meet my contact but I'll meet you here tomorrow!" she said with a smirk before putting up her hood and bouncing away. Igneous turned to Leigh. He was still mad at him and Saikur but he had to push personal feelings away when it came to business.

"Are we staying at an inn or outside?" he asked.

"If the inn has a place for all the horses and can accommodate Caayla's pegasus, then sure," Leigh answered curtly. "Igneous..."

Oh, the talk was coming. Before he could continue, there was a sudden, loud shout. The source of the shout was an argument that just seemed to have gotten worse. He watched with interest – though the voices were getting louder, he still couldn't seem to catch the all the words that the two people were throwing at each other. Something about getting fired? He was more even more interested when one of them broke off with an angry "FUCK YOU!" before stomping their way over.

He had short brown hair, blue eyes that were currently stormy with anger, with simple clothing – a black pants and a dark grey short sleeved shirt with a black vest over top. In the very least, he didn't look he could be much older than Igneous was, maybe a year or two at the most. He looked Igneous in the eye. "What are you looking at?"

Igneous blinked. He certainly didn't sound like a male.

"What happened over there? Are you okay?" he asked.

"I just got kicked out my mercenary group," the person said. "Apparently they don't like my attitude! Ha, I don't need them anyway!"

"You could always join us," Leigh offered. "We're always looking to hire more mercenaries. We need a lot to face the Zahan army."

"Zahan? Seriously? It sounds a little risky but if they pay's decent, then I have something to show to the assholes who thought they didn't need me. I guess I'm in. I'm Charlisse but call me Charlie instead if you know what's good for you. And whatever you think, I'm a freaking girl okay? I'm tired of people thinking I'm a boy for some stupid reason," she said, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"I could tell you were a girl," Elena mumbled.

"It should be help that we have more people who know what they're doing in Fraedia now," Arder muttered, his fingers brushing across the handle of a sword like he was itching to draw it. He also seemed keen on changing the subject but it wasn't like Igneous blamed him. "I don't like this place. I also ways feel like I have to be on edge."

"Fraedia does that," Charlie muttered with a shrug. "I mean, you're pretty much dead if you aren't paranoid."

"That's... nice to know," Igneous mumbled. Maybe the whole group was under prepared but before he could dwell on that, something strange popped in the corner of his vision. All he could make out was that it was purple and wispy, like fog or smoke that stayed close to the ground. He decided that the shape was vaguely like a small animal that was walking on all fours, like a bear maybe but much too small. It reared its head up at him, regarding him with glowing yellow eyes before growling, making Igneous jump a little.

It turned around, looking to the general direction of The Barren. It walked a little, then looked back for Igneous like it wanted him to follow it. He merely shook his head – The Barren was the last place he wanted to be and he wasn't going to follow some tiny bear that may not even actually exist. Something in his chest just screamed that it was a trap. He wasn't sure if it was just his gift or if he was actually imaging it because his visions didn't usually work that way.

" _You have no choice!_ " it barked at him, like it spoke directly in his head. " _You can go willingly or be dragged kicking and screaming!_ "

"Igneous!" Garath called, shaking him harshly by the shoulders. Igneous blinked and the tiny, wispy bear vanished from sight. "You there?"

"Yeah, I'm here," he answered. He got a lot of strange looks, mostly of concern, and he slowly realized that he was the only one who could see or hear the tiny bear. He must have zoned everybody else out to watch it. Garath was one of the only ones who didn't give any sort of look and he smiled when Igneous responded.

"Good. You zoned out on us. Do you need a break?"

"How long did I zone out for?" he mumbled.

"Just a minute or so," Iniabi answered. "You see something?"

Charlie huffed. "Yo! Any of you mind filling me in?"

"Once we're out on the road, you can get the full story," Leigh said. "I don't think Igneous would appreciate saying anything in such a public place." At least Leigh learned something from their talk. He was at least thinking a little bit of how Igneous was feeling and he did appreciate that nobody demanded that he tell them what he saw. He was still stuck wondering himself if it was actually there and he was the only one sensitive enough to see it or if it was the strangest vision he had ever seen.

Wait, no, he saw something like that before, back at the temple just after the fire. He was with Saikur, he could remember that. That time, it also been trying to lead him somewhere, probably to The Barren, but it didn't talk before and that bear was also bigger. Should he be concerned?

Well, at least they didn't seem to be able to actually touch him and endanger him in any way. It was more like an ominous warning at best but for what, he couldn't tell. There was no use in getting concerned then.

* * *

The inn had no accommodations for the all the horses, and Leigh and Saikur were both worried that somebody may try to steal them, so they all decided to just camp outside again, much to the disappointment of Igneous. It was hard to sleep outside when he knew a bed was so close! Caalya wrote in her book that she was glad that they were staying outside – she didn't want to leave Athena alone, Athena being her pegasus. It wasn't so much that she was afraid Athena would run off, just that pegasi were more sought after than a regular horse was and she couldn't help but to be worried that something would happen to her. If they had gone with the inn, Igneous had a feeling Caalya would stay outside, both to protect Athena and to put some distance between herself and Gerben.

It was still early in the day, so Gerben had decided that he wanted to forage a bit in the forest they left behind. He had the sudden craving for some fresh berries and for once, Igneous didn't quite mind walking around some more, especially if it got him out of talking with Saikur and Leigh because for some reason, he was still a little ticked off with the both of them. Clearly, they could tell because they didn't linger around him for long but who knows when they decided that they needed to talk? He wasn't in the mood for it.

"Can I come with you?" Igneous asked as Gerben stretched himself. He seemed surprised.

"I thought you didn't like walking?"

"I'm not fond of it," he mumbled. "But you know..."

"You want some space, sure." He rose to his feet and he went to the closest person. It was Charlie. "Hey, Charlie, right?"

She was sitting down, wiping her blade clean when she looked at Gerben. "Yeah, what of it?" she asked, her look one of silent judgment. She seemed like she was a little rough around the edges but maybe she was still mad that she was kicked out of her other group. He was beginning to see why how others might not like her attitude though.

"I'm taking Igneous with me for foraging. I just wanted to let somebody know," he said simply. Charlie nodded. "We should be back in a couple of hours."

"Sure," she stated simply. "If go missing for any reason, get separated or whatever, the universal meeting place in Fraedia is the capital, Valburn. If we can't find you, I'll send everybody there. It's stupid to go outside from a main group with no plan."

"Sure, thanks for the idea," Gerben said, his look serious but softened when he looked back down at Igneous. "Let's go, kiddo."

The forest wasn't far away from the city, it was visible from the city, but it was large enough that even while it was far away, it looked like it was close. It didn't look like a twenty minute walk but that it was. "Remember to stay close. Amaryllis said something about the forests being possibly dangerous, right? If we run into problems, I'm transforming and we're dashing."

"What about the berries?"

"We eat as we go!"

"Is that safe?"

"I know which ones are safe," Gerben said with a confident grin. "Or if you're worried, you don't gotta eat any of them. You said you just wanted some space, right?"

"Yeah... it's still awkward with Saikur and Leigh right now," he mumbled.

Gerben frowned. "What happened anyway? I know you were mad but you know, I don't want to make the same mistake they did."

Igneous frowned too. "They were just... too protective. They wanted to know everything about what I see when they just don't know about anything about them and usually, I guess it would be alright, but it was like they were entitled to know everything. I feel like I'm better off not sharing everything. I don't like the idea that somebody's constantly hounding me when they don't know how it feels," Igneous mumbled.

Gerben merely nodded, his eyes carefully scanning the bushes while his nose scrunched.

"You are alright though, right?" Igneous asked.

"Why wouldn't I be?

"You haven't been as cheerful since the fire."

"I'm worried, I won't deny that. It's obvious I can't always protect you," Gerben mumbled. "But you seem fine either way, you must be confident in everybody if you can put yourself in harm's way on purpose. I just need to get used to sharing the responsibility and the guilt. It's not just us three anymore."

Igneous blinked. "You're jealous."

"A little... I guess. Especially when there are others that are doing a better job at protecting you than I am. I thought that as one of your long-term guardians, I would have done better."

"But didn't you save Mira and I?"

"After you got hurt, I killed the man who attacked you but it's not like that did you a lot of good, right? It wasn't like they were going to kill you," Gerben said with a sigh.

"But that wouldn't have been the same for Mira if they thought she was too much trouble and if you hadn't killed him, I might have be in Zahan hands right now," Igneous mumbled. He was unconscious at the time but he did hear about what happen from Mira. At least, Gerben was protective in a different way than Saikur and Leigh were. Instead of chewing Igneous out for putting himself into dangerous situations like Leigh and Saikur did, Gerben internalized his own mistakes when he wasn't able keep Igneous safe. It was never Igneous' fault with him, and Igneous wasn't sure which one he preferred because he didn't like watching Gerben doubt himself. "You're doing fine. You're one person, a big person, but one person. You can't be everywhere, you said that yourself!"

Gerben didn't say anything at first, just looked away for a moment. Igneous bit his lips but managed a smile when Gerben managed to find one.

"Thanks, Iggy," he said, ruffling his hair. "Now for those berries!"

Igneous lost track of how long they spent in the forest but he alerted Gerben when he realized they didn't have a lot of sunlight left and that the others were probably worried, especially Saikur and Leigh. He was beginning to expect to see Amaryllis looking for them at any moment, because out of everybody, she seemed to be the best when it came to tracking people down because her income basically depended on being able to find people. However, he doubted she was done with whatever business occupied her.

However, he began to realize that he didn't even know where he was. They must have gone deep into the forest because he could no longer see the tree line in any direction he looked.

"Do you know where we're supposed to go?" Igneous asked as Gerben began to stretch after spending a great deal of time compressing himself to be at the same level as the berry bushes. He definitely seemed to be pretty satisfied with his trip and he even managed to get Igneous to taste some the berries.

Gerben looked at him with a look Igneous didn't want to see – he looked perplexed. Igneous frowned and got worried when he could see realization hit Gerben.

"You're a bear! How do you get lost in a forest? Wouldn't you have a better sense of this stuff than a regular human?"

"What does that have to do with anything? I'm not a full-time bear and even if I was, this isn't my natural habitat! Real bears would probably do better when it comes to be in an unfamiliar place!" Gerben shouted but Igneous knew not to take it personally. Gerben wasn't in the business of offending people so when he shouted, it was more at himself than anybody else.

"And I never really had to leave the temple and when I did, I was always with somebody... so I never needed a sense of direction," Igneous mumbled to himself. He knew how bad that sounded, with the lack of independence and all, but it was most certainly true. It wasn't even really hard to find the temple in Dosia because if he couldn't see it, somebody else always knew where to find it. However, there weren't helpful people in the forest and all the trees looked the same. It didn't help that there seemed to a distinct lack of a path in the forest, or if there was one, neither of them seemed to have noticed it. Was there even a path when they went in? "What do we do?"

"I'm going to climb one of these trees to try and see where we are in comparison to the tree line," Gerben muttered. Igneous looked up at the trees.

"... Can any of them support your weight? Can you even climb them?"

"Pfft, bears are better climbers than humans!" he exclaimed as he suddenly transformed and dashed up one of the trees. He did a lot better than expected and the tree trunk didn't move even with the new weight on it. However, as he watched Gerben climb the tree, a sudden chill ran up his back just as a feeling of dread washed over him. He supposed it was the feeling of being watched, though he couldn't recall ever feeling anything like that. He just didn't know where such a feeling of dread would come from, especially with Gerben being so far up from the ground.

"Gerben?" he squeaked. He wasn't sure if he heard him.

Suddenly, an arrow whizzed by, hitting the tree trunk just by his head. It was a warning shot, he figured. He turned around quickly to find two figures, one holding some sort of bow and the other appeared to another ursurine. She was female, the first female Igneous ever saw, with hair dark hair the seemed to go down to the middle of her back. Like Gerben, she had the stone cuffs around her wrists and legs, though it was obvious to Igneous that she held more weights in a vest, which she wore over a sleeveless white shirt and black pants. Her blue eyes were full of excitement and her skin was tanned, much like a lot of Fraedians, he was beginning to notice. Maybe Fraedians happened to be out in the sun more often than Adossians.

Gerben suddenly landed on the ground in front of him and protectively stood in front of him with a low growl just after shifting back into his human form.

"Hey calm down! I don't mean you any harm and I'm sure my cub here didn't mean anything," the ursurine said, patting the smaller human on the shoulder, which earned her a pout from her companion as he swatted her hand away. "But hey, if you want a spar, I'm always up for a spar!" She cracked her knuckles.

"Who are you guys?" Igneous asked, peeking from behind Gerben who kept up his aggressive posture. There was no sign of him relaxing so if somebody was going to be nice, it had to be Igneous. "And why did you try to shoot me?"

"I was trying to get your attention," the other stated. He definitely sounded male, so Igneous was going to assume he was one but he kept himself completely concealed in a green cloak. Igneous did notice that he didn't seem to be wearing any sort of footwear though. "What's your business here?"

"Gerben wanted berries. We just got lost!" Igneous muttered. He didn't feel so threatened anymore. It was obvious that the guy tried to be threatening, or at least he tired to appear cool and uncaring, perhaps to try to get an answer from him and he may have been worried if the ursurine was anything but the way she was acting. She was so laid back that it made the seriousness of the other almost funny. Even Gerben was eventually relaxing himself.

The female laughed. "Only a bear would get lost for berries!" she cheered. "I'm Orla and my cub here is Will!" She knocked the hood off of his head, to reveal somebody with messy, brown hair that went down to his neck, and light green eyes. He shot her a glare as he replaced his hood.

"I'm Gerben, and he's Igneous but I like to call him Iggy," Gerben said while Igneous focused on Will's appearance. Green eyes reminded him of somebody he knew. Green eyes, green eyes... who did he know with green eyes? When he thought about, more than one person came to mind. Damn.

It was bugging him, trying to figure out who Will reminded him of. It must have shown on his face because he earned himself an elbow to his side, courtesy of Gerben. When he recovered from that, he straightened himself out and took in a deep breath. "Do you have any siblings?" Igneous asked all of a sudden.

Will gave him a nasty glare. If Will didn't trust him before, he certainly didn't anymore. Even Gerben gave him a weird look, then looked up like he was contemplating something. "Yeah, he looks like kind of like Mira, doesn't he?"

"Mira... how do you know Mira? Where is she? Is she alright?" he asked, his shooting hand reaching for another arrow but Orla smacked his hand away.

"She's travelling with us and last I checked, she was fine but then we got lost so..." Igneous muttered. "Are you the brother she's looking for?"

"Where are you headed?" he suddenly. "If you're not lost, then I can protect my sister again."

Igneous was about to say something when a vision came to him. _He wasn't sure what he was seeing – the sky was literally black, the grass was brown and it was dry enough that it crunched under his feet. Along the grass, he could see a rusty chain, with each link of the chain being larger than his head. The chain seemed to go on infinitely in both directions but suddenly, the chain went taut and rose off of the ground. He could hear a heavy sigh before suddenly, the rusty chain was ripped forwards and Igneous jumped back, giving the chain plenty of room before it inevitably snapped._

 _It hurt his ears. The snapping noise was louder than it should have been and he could feel it ringing in his head. Whatever sighed earlier was laughing and cheering – it was a deep, masculine sounding laugh that dripped with malice. He noticed that when the chain on his end was laying flat again, the broken end just by his feet, a fog rolled in. It was dark in colour and heavy, sticking close to his feet before slowly twisted up his legs. It made him feel disgusted and nauseated, like there was something tainted about it and he may have just been more sensitive to it than anybody else. He shivered._

" _You're ignoring me," a deep voice stated simply. "Go ahead. Keep running, keep ignoring me, but I will always know where you are."_

He came back feeling nauseated too, on his hands and knees, gasping for breath. He never had a vision that felt like it beat him up so badly, he was never left panting and feelings never carried over from the vision back to reality. Gerben helped him into a sitting position because he felt... out of it. That was the only way he could describe it. Something didn't feel right with him but he couldn't figure out what was bothering him so much or even how to really stop it from bothering him. It freaked him out when something out of the norm happened and that was definitely out of the norm. He would have to asked Elena about it.

"Iggy? What happened?"

"Saw something... I don't know what it was but it was not nice," he said. He didn't understand much of it himself, he didn't have the time to mull over what he saw, but it was hard to do when he just felt so bad. He could feel a dull ache in his chest on top of the nausea and it just left him confused. Why was he having so many problems?

Orla looked alarmed and Will seemed curious.

"Do you need to rest for a bit?" Gerben asked. Igneous nodded and had no problem leaning his weight against Gerben. He fell asleep quickly.

* * *

Gerben waited until Igneous was deeply asleep before he shifted his weight and placed Igneous against a tree. He could really sleep soundly if he wanted to do and it seemed like that was one of those times that he could – he really needed the sleep if he reacted so badly to a vision. Gerben was panicky about it but somebody had to be calm about it or Igneous would spend all of his free time freaking out about it too. Igneous was sensitive in that regard.

"We should get moving. It's bad to stay in one place for too long in the forest," Will mumbled. "Are all of your allies in the nearby town?"

"Yeah, we walked about twenty minutes or so to get to the forest from town."

"Oh, we can get to that easily then," Orla said with a grin. "Grab your cub and get going!"

Gerben did as they told him to do. It wasn't that he was a pushover but if they didn't return soon, then Leigh and Saikur would most certainly send a rescue party, assuming they hadn't done so already. Maybe they were going to wait for more light. Gerben wasn't the best with planning – he let his somewhat whimsical desires lead him in life. He didn't have much direction or any goals, he just did whatever struck his fancy and that worked well enough for him. It was how he met Igneous. He saved up some gold with the intents of seeing what the oracle was all about, but he didn't think he wasn't going to return home or be the only ursurine he knew of in Adoss.

But that was just where life led him, he supposed. He did care about Igneous, he wouldn't have stayed if he didn't, but he didn't much care about all the politics that followed his 'cub'. Gerben left that to the people who cared – Leigh who needed such order and control and Saikur who seemed overly attached to Igneous.

He noticed that Igneous already felt rather warm in his arms. Maybe he was coming down with a fever and that's why he reacted so badly to the vision but he seemed fine prior to it. He never really stuck around during one of Igneous' fevers though – he got them every couple of years but Gerben just gave him space and only came if Igneous' ramblings demanded it. He had too many people crowding around him as it was.

"How did you meet your cub anyway?" Orla asked with a smile as they carefully began to move in the forest. He never really thought about calling Igneous is cub but he guessed that it was like that at the end of the day. Igneous was young when they first met and he was the closest thing he had to a child – he didn't have to be an ursurine to be his cub. Will was definitely not an ursurine but he was still got the nickname from Orla.

"He's the oracle. I just wanted to see what it was all about and he wouldn't let me leave."

"And Orla wouldn't leave me alone. I let her stay because I couldn't make her leave," Will mumbled.

"He says that but he appreciates me," she said with a proud smile. "We met-"

"He doesn't need the story of our lives right now."

"Fine," she grumbled.

They travelled mostly in silence from then on when Will reminded her that needed to be quiet if they wanted to avoid any bandits who decided to hide in the forest. Gerben used the hand that supported Igneous' neck to tuck some hair out of his face when he realized that Igneous was way too warm, even warmer than he was when Gerben first noticed that something was amiss. His temperature shouldn't be going up that fast, should it?

Orla must have noticed that he stopped because she stopped too and took a glance back. "He's looked better," she mumbled.

"We're not more than half an hour away from the closest town. Mira and your allies should be there, right? Surely he can hold on," Will mumbled.

"But his temperature's going up way too fast," Gerben mumbled. But they were right – Igneous wouldn't die if he had to wait half an hour at the most and as soon as he was in Elena's care, then he would alright. He was just concerned.

Orla talked to him more after that, partially because she seemed to just want to take his mind off of it and the other reason being that just seemed to be the type to talk a lot. She bragged about how much weight she could carry, which actually wasn't all that unusual for one ursurine to do when they met another. Strength was something most ursurines worked their entire lives for, regardless of sex or age, and it was customary for cubs to get their first set of stone cuffs when they win their first fight or displayed some other great display of strength, and more cuffs were made and more weight was added as they grew older.

The cuffs themselves were basically two pieces of interlocking stone that a professional would carve from stone. Most professionals were also ursurines but Gerben could remember finding a human in Adoss that would make his grieves when he showed them how his cuffs interlocked.

Orla really just reminded Gerben about his life in Vedia, where he did grow up some other ursurines in a blended village with humans. He could remember the competitions he had with the other ursurines in the village, he could remember how they bragged about how much weight they could carry and the next day, Gerben would be carrying more. He forgot about a lot of that stuff when he decided to stay in Adoss. Nobody really asked him about what it was like to be an ursurine but he was also sure that general population of Adoss were just frightened and didn't want to be in the presence of somebody who looked like he could snap their neck without any effort.

But when Gerben thought about it, it didn't take much to kill the human that attacked Igneous. Perhaps their fears were well founded.

"So about that spar?" Orla asked. "When your cub is in safe hands and my cub can see his sister, of course!"

"Sure," Gerben said. He couldn't remember the last time he actually had a friendly fight with somebody. Sure, he exercised to maintain his muscles and fought in more serious battles, but a light hearted battle was probably just the thing he needed to feel more confident in his abilities to protect Igneous, or his cub as Orla liked to call him.

"Awesome!' Orla shouted excitedly, cracking her knuckles in anticipation.

"I'm beginning to feel like you two should be related," Will said with a sigh. "One Orla is enough. I don't need Orla and somebody like Orla."

"We barely met," Gerben mumbled.

"I know. But for some reason, I can see you both drinking and playing cards and both of you being bad at it."

Igneous suddenly groaned, almost like he agreed with Will.

"It was one time!" Orla mumbled.

"The one time it counted," Will mumbled.

"We need more people like Orla in our camp though," Gerben mumbled. "I can't be the only one to defend poor Iggy against the seriousness that is his other guardians."

"See, it's a good thing."

Will's shoulders fell. "We'll see about that," he said quietly as the broke the treeline.

* * *

 _I would have uploaded earlier, except that I had three midterms in four days and an assignment on top of that. It wasn't fun. I also like to get more of the next chapter done but I seem to have trouble with it._

 _I was also going to introduce another character here, one more of the submitted ones, but I figured that three were probably enough and I shouldn't over do it._


	11. In Which Not Everything is Clear

Saikur was pacing to the point where Charlie yelled at him for making her dizzy watching him before huffing and hiding in a tent, which they provided for her. Elena was watching him with mild interest as she carefully went through her stock of herbs, laying them out on a long sheet of fabric. She sighed suddenly, carefully putting her herbs away before motioning for Saikur to sit with her. He hesitated but he decided to entertain her and sat down beside her, in front of her tent.

"You know he'll return eventually, right? Gerben would keep him safe through the night and we can go look for them in the morning if we have to. Your worrying isn't helping anybody," Elena mumbled. "But I think I can see why you care so much."

Somehow, she made that sound threatening.

"Oh?" he questioned, curious about what she saw in their relationship. Surely, she didn't know much about his past or his issues with his mother. If anything, she would only know whatever Igneous' report said about their shared past, if anything was mentioned at all.

"You love him. Like, beyond just being really good friends. I don't think its platonic anymore."

Saikur wasn't fazed by much but he could feel his face burn. She wasn't completely wrong about him – he knew he cared about Igneous too much and he cared way more than anybody. He seemed to care more about Igneous than Igneous cared about himself. His feelings were probably beyond platonic but it hadn't taken any time to reflect on his feelings, just sort of react on them. He reacted every time Igneous was not normal and Saikur desperately wanted to talk and make things right with him but he could tell Igneous wasn't in the mood.

Igneous would never quite know what he did for Saikur. It meant everything to him to have an older brother to care for him and for a friend that genuinely liked him and could ignore all of the bullshit that came with being the son of his mother. He was probably still different kinds of messed up but Igneous made his miserable childhood better. Was it actually love though? He wasn't sure what actual love really looked like, at least what love was when it was romantic. His mother was the embodiment of lust, which he learned later in life that it wasn't the same thing as love.

"Oh, come on! I'm not here to tease you about it," Elena said sincerely. "I just get a little excited is all, I didn't mean anything by it."

"How could you tell?" He hoped he didn't look like some kind of fool.

"Well, despite us not actually knowing each other for long, I've seen you at your best and at your lowest back at the temple. You are always at your best when Igneous is paying attention to you exclusively and at your lowest whenever there's something wrong with him. Or like right now, when he's not here and he's mad at you on top of it. You're kind of a wreck right now." She shrugged at him again. "But I also know how you feel, so if you need somebody to talk, you can come to me."

Saikur merely nodded in understanding and even managed a small smile. He wasn't sure what his feelings were but it was nice to know that he had somebody else he could talk to. It also made sense to him, why she was staring at Amaryllis with such a satisfied grin.

He stood up and thanked Elena before wandering into his own tent. He pulled out his axe, a cloth, and some polish which he only had because Leigh insisted on it. He usually found it useless to do anything more than just clear it of any blood or dirt but if he couldn't pace then he would do something mundane, like polishing a weapon that probably didn't need it. The only reason why he bothered was because Leigh hounded him if he didn't. It wasn't long into the polishing that he noticed that one of the horses whinnied loudly and there was a flurry of activity outside.

Maybe Gerben and Igneous came back. Saikur quickly dropped his things and made his way over. The first thing he saw was an ursurine he was unfamiliar with, along with a guy in green being hugged by Mira. Mira dug her face into his shoulder and he had single hand on her back while she sobbed. It looked like a touching reunion, and for a moment, he was happy for Mira, but his mind quickly concerned itself with Igneous so the sentiment didn't last long. Gerben only arrived a moment after Saikur did, carrying Igneous in his arms.

"Gerben! What happened? Is he injured?" Saikur asked as ran over.

"No," Gerben answered simply. "But his temperature is high. He needs to see Elena."

Gerben simply walked past him with Igneous still in his arms. It took Saikur a moment to collect himself before he made his way to way Igneous, who was in his tent that Saikur set up for him shortly after he and Gerben left. Gerben and Elena were already inside the tent when he got there so he decided to just stay outside and listen in. He didn't want to crowd Elena if she could help Igneous.

"So I'm assuming this fever is like the ones he had previously," Elena mumbled. "How interesting. The reports said nothing about the fever being the only symptom."

"Does that mean anything?" Saikur asked.

"Oh, Saikur, you can come in!" Elena called from inside the tent. He took a deep breath as he crawled inside. Gerben managed to compress himself into taking up as little room as possible, which was rather impressive for somebody as big as he was, while Igneous was quite clearly asleep in the middle, on top of most his blankets, but he rolled onto his side and under what seemed to be the thinnest of his blankets. Saikur was glad – he thought Igneous was unconscious and something serious happened, but he was just tired because he had a fever. The fever couldn't be pleasant but it could be managed, especially since he had them before. He seemed to be sleeping well too, well enough that he didn't seem to notice that Gerben was removing the boots and his accessories. He sat down beside Elena.

"What does it mean though, when you said the fever had no other symptoms?"

"Well, a fever is a symptom in itself. There's usually something that's causing it, like an illness, and then there are other symptoms that come with the illness, but I've never seen a fever just be on its own. It's weird." She placed a cool cloth on his head, which only stayed because it was so long that it could just rest easily on either side of his head. "I'll be back. I need to get some herbs and then I'll make some tea for him. It should help reduce his fever."

Saikur never thought about that. He showed no signs of being ill when he left with Gerben and he was fine throughout the entire day too, or at least as fine as Igneous was when he was marching. If he was really sick, he was sure Igneous would make sure everybody knew just because he would complain about it so much. It wasn't a normal fever though, so he supposed that explained why it came so suddenly, but it didn't really explain anything else.

"He only got the fever after a vision," Gerben mumbled. "He was fine before the vision. He was walking and talking and there wasn't a difference but then he had a vision and it went downhill after that."

"A vision did this?" Saikur asked. Didn't he have visions all the time? What made that last one any different than the ones that didn't make him sick?

"Well, I don't know for sure but he was on his hands and knees before he came back from it. I've never seen him react so violently to a vision before."

Suddenly, Igneous groaned and opened his eyes. "Igneous!" Saikur called, placing his hands on his shoulders to keep Igneous down. He let go though, when it was made obvious that Igneous just didn't have the strength to really move around. What was he doing? Why did he feel the need to make sure Igneous was still? It wasn't like Igneous was stupid – he would know he was sick better than anybody and Igneous wasn't the kind of person who would push it. Maybe Saikur really was too protective of him as a whole... maybe he was suffocating him. He shook his head, tying to clear his thoughts. There was no time for negative feelings like that.

"Saikur?" Igneous mumbled.

"Yeah, I'm here. You made it back."

"I'm glad."

"I'm back!" Elena called, holding a steaming cup in her hands. "And he's already awake! I need you two to sit him up. This should help lower the fever a bit."

Gerben repeated what he said earlier as Igneous drank his tea and flopped back into his bed, the cool cloth placed back on his head and the thin blanket drawn up again.

"I saw something weird," Igneous mumbled. "I saw a chain, a pretty big chain, and then it broke. There was somebody there, and it said it would always know where I was, so there was no use in running... ugh, my head hurts."

"And you started to feel bad right after you had that?" Elena asked. Igneous nodded weakly. "I'm sure this never happened to the other oracles, but for now, just rest up. We'll give you something to drink throughout the night, you need to keep your fluids up. I'm sure we can get whoever is doing patrols to check in on you everyone once in a while."

"Oh, they don't have to do that... I'll just sleep."

"Right now?" Saikur asked.

Igneous nodded, so everybody got out of his tent to let him sleep. Saikur was optimistic that Igneous would be fine in a couple of days, just like with his prior fevers. They never seem to last more than a few days and by the end of it, it was like it never happened – he was back in the lobby of the temple reading people, even if his fever only broke a few hours prior to reading people again. However, it might require that they stay a couple of more days until the fever did break.

Was it safe to stay in one place for so long though? In Adoss, it wouldn't have been a problem Fraedia was clearly different. He approached Leigh's tent – Leigh probably had a better idea of that than Saikur did at the moment. Saikur's mind felt strangely muddled so he wouldn't be able to think clearly about the situation, especially when he was worried about Igneous. He wanted to be a voice of reason but he couldn't seem to manage it at the moment.

"Leigh? It's Saikur."

"You are welcomed inside."

Leigh's tent certainly had the appearance of a soldier's tent. It was well organized and there was not one thing that seemed out of place but it was also strangely sparse, like Leigh had no personal items. He just seemed to keep the necessities around, since it was easy to just pick it all up and leave.

"Igneous is down with one of his fevers again," Saikur mumbled. "Is it possible to stay here for a day or two before leaving again?"

"I'm not sure if we put enough distance between ourselves and Zahan," Leigh said frankly. "I'm not too worried about the bandits but we haven't see what the Zahan army is truly capable of and we still don't know their motives."

"But-"

"I don't think it's negotiable this time, Saikur. We have plenty of horses he can ride on and rest at the same time or he can ride with Caayla or Elena but we have to keep moving."

Leigh had that sort of his face, the kind of look that just dared Saikur to argue. He debated to himself for a moment but decided that Leigh had a point. They couldn't relax just because they couldn't see Zahan or because it was beginning to feel less like they were running away when they had a definitely goal in mind. It was important to Igneous to get to Vedia and with that mind, it was almost like Zahan wasn't a problem anymore.

Out of sight, out of mind, he supposed.

"I suppose either Caayla or Elena would have to do. Maybe Elena since she's not wearing armour," Saikur said with a sigh.

"If everything was right in the world, he would be able to get to sleep for as long as he wanted while he was down with a fever but time isn't a luxury we have right now." Leigh looked sincere, kind even. Saikur wasn't so sure why he was surprised by that. "You should try to get some sleep so you can be there for him in the morning."

Saikur merely nodded. "Goodnight, then."

"Goodnight, Saikur."

* * *

In the morning, Saikur saw Igneous up and about, mumbling to himself and slowly making his way over to the morning fire pit. It was started and maintained by Garath while Reina was sitting quietly with him as they began to prepare breakfast. It looked to be some sort soup, as most of their food seemed to be but it was easy to make on the road. Igneous still looked bad and judging by his behaviour, he must have still felt bad or even worse. Igneous was at least coherent the night before but that was no longer the case. For one, Igneous always prepared for travelling by braiding his hair but his hair was actually moderately tangled and hung loose. He walked barefoot and without his cloak or any of jewellery, so he didn't even lived up to his own standards. It was wrong to see him look so bare.

Caayla grabbed Igneous' wrist, shook her head, and gestured back to his tent. Her journal was right beside her but her gesturing seemed to work better, as it was questionable whether or not Igneous could actually process anything he read while he was in his state.

However, he answered by sitting down, so Saikur joined him at the ground.

"Igneous," he said with a stern voice. "What are you doing?"

"I'm hungry..." he mumbled. "And my head hurts."

Charlie chose that moment to join them. "I wonder why," she mumbled as she sat down. "Maybe you shouldn't be walking around like an idiot when you're sick."

"I'm not that sick," he mumbled. Or at least, that was what Saikur thought he meant. He wasn't entirely sure what it was he actually said that time around.

Caalya picked up her book and wrote inside, presenting her writing to Reina who happened to be the closest to her. She squinted. "Saikur, do you know if we are still travelling today?"

"Unfortunately," Saikur answered. "Leigh doesn't think we have the time to wait until he gets better, so he'll just have to ride with either Caayla or Elena. I hate the idea but he's got a point."

"Zahan won't attack us," Igneous said suddenly, like a moment of lucidity came to him. His eyes were bright, just like how Igneous usually was when he wasn't sick. He must have just had a vision, it could be hard to notice when he was just sitting because his silence could either be a vision or he was deep in thought. But then what was the difference between that vision and the one that troubled him the night before? "At least, we are not the priority target at the moment. I see blood smeared all over a mosaic of some kind... a mosaic of a manakete, I think! It's a big purple dragon! They don't really wear Zahan's colours but it feels professional and aggressive, so I don't think they are bandits."

Everybody looked at Igneous with a strange look. For him to switch from him grumbling and bordering on incoherent to being back to normal for a split second was certainly odd. It was almost like vision shifted something back into place but it didn't last long, as the sudden moment of alertness disappeared. He slumped over, back to being confused.

"Garath, can you watch him? I'm going to grab some of things," Saikur mumbled.

"Of course," he said. Saikur went to Igneous' tent and dug around for the comb and his hair ties all in one arm. With the other, he had the cloak and the boots. Igneous could survive without his jewellery for one day, especially if he was going to spend the day being supported by others. Heck, he was probably going to asleep all day so it wasn't like he had the energy to even enjoy them. By the time he came back, Igneous was still sitting up, so Saikur set the cloak and boots down before sitting behind him.

It wasn't the first time that Saikur braided Igneous' hair. It was just easier for Igneous to get help for it, that way he could sit on his back instead of it sitting on his shoulder. However, combing his hair was definitely a first but he didn't get far. His hair was more tangled than it looked and Saikur couldn't bring the comb through his hair without it getting caught almost immediately. It was enough of a struggle that Reina decided to come over.

"It's easier to just use your fingers sometimes," she said as she began to comb her fingers through the biggest of the tangle and slowly detangled it. Igneous sat pleasantly still the entire time, and while Reina was working on his hair, Saikur managed to get Igneous to put the boots on. There was no sense in him going back into the tent anyhow. Between the two of them, Igneous was wearing boots, his hair was braided, and he was wearing his travelling cloaked, although it was the hardest thing to get on him.

"You could just cut his hair," Charlie offered as soon as the job was complete. "Long hair gets in the way."

"He's a bit too vain to enjoy it. He'll kill us somehow," Saikur muttered, reclaiming his spot beside Igneous. Reina went back to Caalya, reading something in her notebook.

Charlie snickered but before she could say anything, Garath changed the topic. "I have to say though, I am worried about what he said."

"About a mosaic? I think there's a big one like that in Valburn," Charlie mumbled. "The dragon is big meeting place. It is purple too."

"Actually, the palace has one too. I might have gone in there once or twice," Amaryllis said suddenly, approaching them from behind. She still had her hood up but she must have just arrived back at their camp. It was great timing too. "And what's wrong with our little oracle, here?" she asked as she bent down and stroked Igneous' cheek with her hand. It pissed him off and he had no idea why something so small bothered him so much, and it only served to bother him even more. He wanted to bat her hand away and make sure that nobody like her got that close to Igneous.

"You would know about a mosaic in the palace, wouldn't you?" Saikur growled. "He's sick. Don't bother him."

Amaryllis gave him a knowing smirk. "Whatever you say," she said as she pulled away and stood up to her full height, placing her hands on her hips. "What about those dragons though?"

"He just said there was blood smeared across it," Reina answered. "Igneous, can you tell us more about what you saw? What did the dragon look like?"

"I doubt he'll answer. 'Sides, maybe it could be both of them. The palace is in Valburn," Charlie mumbled. "All we need to care about is the fact that there are Zahan forces in Valburn."

"At least, part of their forces," Garath said, his tone on the sombre side. "Maybe they've split their forces up between us and Valburn. It's something we have to consider. We can't get comfortable here."

"Nobody said we were, sweetheart," Amaryllis stated. "We should get moving soonish though, especially if he's going to be like that." She jerked her thumb into Igneous' direction. Igneous was pretty useless with a fever, Saikur couldn't deny that. He was just too out of it, even to get himself ready.

"Caalya says that when we're ready, she'll take Igneous," Reina mumbled.

Garath nodded. "Great. Breakfast is ready so once everybody eats, we can get on the road."

There was the problem of getting everybody awake and eating. Garath placed a bowl of soup into Igneous' hands with a small serving and Igneous was able to eat on his own. He managed to finish all of it, and although it ultimately wasn't a lot of food, Saikur was glad that Igneous got something into his stomach. Once he was satisfied with that, Saikur began going from tent to tent to wake everybody up and get them to breakfast.

The first tent he came across was Mira's, but inside was that boy from yesterday with the cloak, only this time, he had it spread across his body like a blanket. He had messy brown hair but he could still see the family resemblance he had to Mira, who was asleep beside him and facing away from him. The ursurine woman stirred when the light hit her face and woke up on her own.

"Isn't a little cramped here?" Saikur asked.

"No more cramped than some slave quarters," she answered with a shrug as she pulled on her vest. "'Sides, it's not like we had a tent so Mira offered us hers."

"Anyway, it's breakfast time."

"Alright, I'll get the cubs up." The cubs. Gerben sometimes called Igneous that. He wondered if it was an ursrine thing, to take in a human and call them their cubs, but that ursurine was only the second one he ever met, so maybe the ones he knew were just weird.

He found Leigh's tent next. He only called from the outside and when he got a response, he moved to Elena's tent. She was significantly dressed down, wearing something that only just barely seemed to cover her body but she was already awake, reading a book of some kind, and she didn't exactly seem happy that Saikur barged in on her. "At least it's just you," she said.

"Yeah, just me," he responded with a frown. "Anyway, it's breakfast time, so get ready. Igneous had something to eat so he might be feeling a bit better now too."

"That is a good sign," she mumbled as he left her tent to give her some space.

He was left with Gerben, Arder, and Iniabi. Iniabi and Arder were only patrol last night, so he wasn't sure how well they would take to awaking up when they essentially just fell asleep, probably when Garath got up. They needed to be alert and awake in case something happened and he wasn't sure if they were the kind to be able to shrug off the fact they had little sleep. One way to find out he supposed.

He found Arder's tent first. He opened the tent flaps and found him wearing pretty much what he wore he when Saikur last saw him, but he had at least taking his shirt off. He noticed that Arder slept with his sword in arm's reach beside him and he instantly became more cautious. He didn't want to see if Arder was the kind to act first and ask later when he was woken up or startled. Deciding to stay just at the tent flap, he called for him. He didn't push further when Arder gave no response – he clearly needed a little bit more sleep. He didn't think that Arder was the kind to sleep so deeply but he supposed that everybody had a limit and maybe Arder had reached his. When they needed to get going, he was going to send Leigh to wake him up – he was the one with all of the armour after all.

Iniabi wasn't as scary when he slept – there wasn't a weapon immediately nearby but he noticed the sword in a sheath and a pile of tomes of all different colours. Iniabi seemed to sleep with that heavy jacket draped over himself, over a thin sheet. "Iniabi," he called out. Unlike Arder, Iniabi did wake up, turning his head towards Saikur.

"Hmmm? Time to get up?" he asked, cracking his eyes open. He yawned and stretch, and Saikur noticed that he had some sort of mark on the back of his hand. Maybe a funny scar? Or maybe it was a tattoo – they weren't too common since he knew it was permanent and it involved a needle with ink being hammered into one's skin. He remembered seeing some on the people that Igneous read when they were still at the temple. At any rate, Saikur didn't pry. Whatever Iniabi decided to do with his body, or even if he was born with it, that was his business. Saikur appreciated it when people stayed out his, so it was only fair to show the same respect to others.

"Only if you want to eat. If you need more sleep, you can rest for a bit more. You wouldn't be the only one."

"Hmm... Ah, is Igneous still asleep? How is he doing?" Iniabi asked has he shifted under the sheets. Saikur pulled out of the tent to give him a little bit of privacy. He guessed that he was probably just going to get up.

"He's awake but he isn't doing much better," he answered from outside. "I'll see you at breakfast then. I still need to get Gerben awake."

Gerben, he knew, wasn't all that scary, at least since Saikur was used to seeing him in his bear form. Gerben always slept in it for some reason. His room in the temple still had a cot, but he piled up everything on the floor and slept on that, and used his cot to store things. In the tent, he seemed to just fall asleep right in the middle, and that was how he found him. Saikur crawled in and patted him lightly on the head.

Gerben transformed immediately. He looked at Saikur with bleary eyes, before suddenly leaving the tent in a hurry, pushing by Saikur to do it. "Gerben! What's the hurry?"

"Is Iggy with everybody else? Is he better then?"

"No. He was actually alright for a moment there, I guess he had another vision, but that didn't last long."

"His visions still work?"

Saikur never thought about that much before. Maybe he did have visions in his fevered state before and just never said anything, or it was he was asleep and they left alone him for a while. His fevers never seemed to be high enough to be deadly, so nobody ever stayed by his side the entire time. Even Saikur needed some sleep and some sort of mundane task to keep his mind busy.

"I guess. It made him better for a time but once he was done telling us what he saw, that was it. It was actually really weird... he changed like that." Saikur snapped his fingers as he finished the sentence. "I'm starting to realize we just don't know anything about him or his abilities. He's clearly different from the other oracles that Elena described. He might look like them and they all share the same ability of foresight but we can't keep comparing him to the other oracles. There's too much of a difference and I don't think he likes thinking about it."

"Agreed," Leigh said as he approached Saikur and Gerben. He was in all of his armour and carrying a lance with him.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Saikur asked.

"I would rather speak with Igneous' other two guardians first. I can wait," Leigh said with a sigh. "I too feel that we don't much about him though. Maybe we kept him in the temple for too long. I know he had a job to do but we didn't let him try a lot of things or let him have a lot of free time."

"That sounds a little weird coming from you," Gerben mumbled. "You and Saikur are both super serious all of the time. It always one of you."

Saikur couldn't disagree. Leigh merely shrugged. "I dreamt of my youth last night. I realized that I knew what I capable of doing because I got to try a lot of things out as a kid and as a soldier in training. Igneous never got that chance to see what he was good at, did he? We never let him."

Igneous never had the chance to be a kid. He started reading people when he was ten, but prior to that, Igneous said that the priests spent three years teaching him how to read, making sure he was healthy since he arrived underweight, and making sure he could speak properly. There wasn't a childhood in there, and there wasn't a childhood in all the years he spent reading people. Saikur could understand, it wasn't like he had a childhood either between training and being a social outcast in his village, but he also didn't have mysterious abilities that in the end, were not well understood.

"We should be more open to what he wants to do because it could lead him to understanding himself better and then we can guard him from a distance and make sure he doesn't get seriously hurt," Leigh stated. "Are we all in agreement?" he asked, holding his hand out. Saikur and Gerben both took it.

"This is should make him happier," Saikur said with a nod. Igneous deserved better. They may be trying to get to Vedia and they may be running from Zahan, but there was no reason why he couldn't explore and try new things more often.

"At any rate, we should make sure we get something to eat. We have a lot to pack up and do before we gotta hit the road again," Leigh sighed. "We still have to make sure he's safe."

Gerben stretched and nodded. "Yeah, let's get ready."

* * *

 _I am so sorry that took so long and there is not much there to be excited about. That last couple of months were kind of hell in terms of no free time. However, I do want to upload some support-like scenes that will serve to supplement updates, so we'll have a "big" update like this and small updates throughout, hopefully. These should serve to help develop characters outside of whoever is narrating.  
_

 _And next big update will go back to the antagonists, so you have that to look forward to!_

 _This is also a story where not all of the characters are straight, but as far as actual romance goes... I don't know what will happen. Romance is not a big thing for me. I don't have any actual pairings in mind and my plans involve seeing how the characters end up developing first. I don't want to set up characters for the sake of having romance._


	12. Support: Mira and Arder

Mira frowned as Arder blocked her blow by holding up his sword in a single hand. He didn't have to press the spare hand against his blade like she saw other sword users do, so maybe her attack was just that weak. She felt like she was missing something important and even after trying to spar with Arder, she felt like she wasn't gaining as much from him as she thought she would. She didn't think that Arder was a bad teacher, except she felt like he hadn't taught her much at all. Rather, he seemed to spend much of those sessions blocking and observing her with those cyan-coloured eyes of his.

Her brother was off to the side, with the hood of his green cloak up, watching curiously as she and Arder exchanged blows for the first time. Orla was beside him, cheering when she managed to dodge one of Arder's blows and she would probably cheer if she got a hit in on him. She didn't know Orla too well, since they met when she was young and she didn't have too many memories of her, but she was glad that somebody stuck by her brother. Orla seemed to have fond memories of her as well but Mira was a little embarrassed that she couldn't remember Orla as well as she would have liked.

When she didn't make a move to attack him again, he paused, his stance relaxing before he dropped the practice sword to the ground. It was probably best that they stopped practicing anyway, as the sun was just about to disappear over the horizon. "What are you thinking about?" he asked quietly.

"I just want to be stronger but... I haven't felt like I got anywhere."

"Well, why did you pick up a sword in the first place?" he asked suddenly.

"I want to be able to protect being close to me," she said intertwining her fingers together. It was a nervous habit of hers, something she picked up in childhood when she spent time with the other slaves. They taught her it was important to always look busy so when she got nervous and her mind froze, she moved her fingers. "Or... I guess I don't want others to feel like they have to protect me all the time. I'm not sure I'll ever be that good of a fighter to actually protect people but I don't want to waste anybody's time or talent trying to protect me on the battlefield. If I could help a little bit by being able to keep myself safe, then I would be happy. I don't like fighting but as long as I'm with Igneous, then it's a fact, no?"

Mira did want to see the journey to an end. If it wasn't for Igneous and Gerben, she would still be with that travelling troupe, not that she didn't like the experience it provided, but it kept her away from her brother. How was Will supposed to know she was in Adoss and not Fraedia? Staying around Igneouswas dangerous though, especially with Zahan after him.

"Well... you're useful in other ways. Your dancing is very, um, inspiring! I didn't mean that 'um' to be there by the way... it's a good thing, I wasn't being sarcastic or anything!" he said with a bit of a sigh as he looked away for a moment. He always did seem a little shy sometimes when he the situation wasn't serious, she noted. "But I think I can see... and I think I can help now."

"Huh?"

"I was trying to watch how you fight. If I told you, I don't think you would fight the same way and that wouldn't would help me understand what your problems are. I don't think you're fighting to a style that suits you. It seems like you've learned from somebody and copied their style instead of using that base of learning to create your own style. For example, you try to hit me with all of your strength but you don't have the strength for an attack like that to work, so it's easy for me to block and even easier for me to counter. You are dancer, not some sort of fighter or armour knight, so I think you should try to combine dancing and swordplay," he said. The more he spoke, the calmer he seemed to be, especially since they were talking about something he was an expert in. He didn't look very old either, so for him to be so good, he had to be knowledgeable.

It did sound like a good idea to her but she wasn't how to go about doing that. Arder must have sensed her hesitation.

"What you should be concentrating on is getting around an opponent with your footwork and then delivering a blow a weak spot. That doesn't even have to be very strong, just accurate. Of course, this wouldn't work with everybody, but it should be more comfortable for you and it should get you out of trouble if you can just incapacitate somebody," he said with a nod. "Dance like you normally would but hold your sword when you do it and practice swinging motions. We can practice some more when you get comfortable with that."

"You're not going to practice with me?" Mira asked, a little surprised. He was more than willing to help her before, so the sudden change confused her.

"I can't do all the work for you. I also thought you would, uh... prefer to practice on your own? You seem shy in clothing sometimes," he said, his eyes darting away from her face. She suddenly felt a little uncomfortable in her dancing clothing. Usually she could wear it fine around the others and she would wear the cloak for travelling since she didn't want total strangers gawking at the loose and revealing fabrics, but Arder pointing it out somehow change that. She wanted her cloak.

"Maybe that's for the best," she said with a nod. "But thank you, Arder. Your advice is appreciated. I'll pay you back somehow, I promise!"

Arder blinked. "That's not necessary. If you accomplish your goals, I'll be satisfied with that."

"I'll practice a lot then! I should get back and see if anybody needs me, so I'll see you later. Thanks again, Arder!" she said with a wave, then she turned around and made her way back to the main camp. It was late at night but dinner would be served soon and she knew she could always help with that. She watched her brother and Orla get up and follow her.

* * *

 _This is short but it should serve as a taste of what I want to accomplish with the in-between, support like chapters. These should let me give some characters more characterization than I believe I can do through the main plot alone and clearly, Fire Emblem as a whole kind of has the same problem, hence the supports! I was originally going to write up three, but my schedule doesn't look too good and I wanted to see how this was received first._

 _Kaizer Rinzence gave me the suggestion of having a dancer using her dancing as a style of swordplay, so that's what gave me the idea for this support._


	13. The Bloodied Dragon

Russell spent most of his living under one motto – most of his problems could be solved by showing people who was the strongest. Actually, it hadn't failed him yet. Violence and being strong was what got him out of Fraedia and to a country like Zahan that was actually willing to use their strength to get what they wanted. He didn't know why that seemed to be such a rare thing nowadays, but he supposed that while nobles could be cruel, they solved all of their problems by throwing their rank around. Somehow, they managed to be threatening with just their words and quite frankly, that was bullshit. People have tried to tell him that there were other ways to solve his problems than through strength and violence, but it as it happened, most of those people weren't alive anymore. He shrugged it off.

The palace was the centre of Valburn, the biggest city in Fraedia, but it wasn't much of a concern to Russell. All of his troops looked like bandits anyway and that wasn't out of the norm in Fraedia– he didn't wear a shred of Zahan's colours and his troops were all the 'uncontrollable' misfits anyway, the ones who didn't care about a uniform and didn't care for authority. The only person they would listen to was Russell, and only because he beat them into submission and being the only one who could beat them, he quickly became a general at twenty-two. In fact, he beat some of them so badly that they decided to go back to the main army and begin to listen to others, just to stay far away from him. The rest were only willing to listen to somebody who was stronger.

It wasn't hard to get the castle gates. He saw the faces of what looked to be mercenaries, but they didn't look interested in them when it became obvious that they weren't going to be hired and didn't interfere. The guards at the gate made to stop them but the first guard didn't even get a word in before Russell grabbed the guard's throat and slammed him into the nearest wall, crushing the man's windpipe as he did so. The other guard dove for his left, into Russell's blind spot, but it wasn't like Russell wasn't prepared for it. He was used to people going for his obvious blind spot but apparently, he didn't have to worry. He heard a scream and the sound of something dripping. Somebody else had him.

However, the gate was still closed and more guards were probably on the way, not as though that was much of worry. The main gate was a collection of bars organized into two doors, with a large chain and a padlock keeping the two doors together. He figured that one of the guards must have a key, but where was the fun in that? He took a moment and turned around, remembering something that Asteria told him before he left.

"I have to remind you all that civilians are off limits. If any of you kill or maim a slave, you're cleaning the whole damn palace on your own and I'll cave your head in myself when you're done. The royal family is mine and if you take my kills away, you'll regret it. Other than that, do as you please. Kill anybody who has the bright idea to fight back. It's been a while since we've had some fun," Russell said with a wide smirk. He cracked his knuckles and removed the axe that he carried on his back. He took a step back and struck his axe downwards, cutting through the chain and throwing the door open.

It was then that they were joined by more guards. His troops cut through them with ease so he led the charge into the castle, cutting through both of the guards at the entrance with a single, wide swing. Laughter escaped his lips as the blood splattered onto his arms. One of his men was the first to break through the doors, slamming his body through the doors which caved under the weight he threw at it. Russell followed him.

Luckily, the slaves all wore the same uniform, some plain white clothing, so it was easy enough to pick them out from the royals they served and the guards who protected them. He watched them all scatter. The beast inside Russell wanted to go after them, he was thrilled by chases, but Asteria was clear in her orders. She wanted casualties to be limited to the royal family, their guards, and anybody who wanted to stop them or take the king's place. Slaves weren't on the list.

Well, she didn't say they had to treat the slaves well. Maybe he would find one to his liking later, he mused as another guard fell dead at his feet. He merely stepped over the body, throwing his axe into the body of a guard that he saw just coming from his left, thanks to the peripheral vision he still had in his right. He laughed again as he retrieved his axe. He thought it was great when they tried to attack from his weak side, mostly because it was fun watching them be surprised that they suddenly had a axe in their gut.

Russell made his way up a small flight of stairs that seemed to lead to the throne room. He was met with more guards, so he figured he must have been going in the right direction. He went for the neck of the first guard who charged him, growing even more excited at the blood that sprayed out. He tore the lance out the guard's hand, and threw it at another guard like a javelin, although it was a steel lance and it wasn't made for throwing. However, the lance found its target and that guard collapsed. Russell had no time to enjoy that kill, as his somebody had gotten behind him and to his surprise, actually managed to hit him. The pain flew up his spine.

He laughed again as he turned on his heels, sending the flat side of his axe into the women's head. She staggered and got up again, swiping her lance at him. He didn't even bother to dodge – blood was blood, even if it was his own. While she was close, he kicked her down and stomped on her stomach repeatedly until the struggle stopped. The other guards ran to him, but the man from earlier who broke the door down intervened.

"Does this count as stealing your kills?" he asked. Russell did not try too hard to commit names to memory, but if he remembered correctly, this man was named Reger. He had that guy! He growled but he would punish Reger later. He shoved him aside and ran to the throne room, kicking the door down as he did so.

The throne room was fancy, he noted. There was a purple dragon mosaic on the floor and Russell wondered if an actual paid artist did it or if it was the work of some slave. The dragon was long, with large claws and an arching back, but no wings, he noted. He vaguely remembered that noble were nice four times a year, once a season when they all got together for a week long feast that celebrated said dragon. Even slaves got time day off, although Russell was 'too dangerous' for anybody to actually let him out. However, even he was still given bigger and better meals than he had on most days. They weren't wrong but still.

There were two thrones, a purple and gold one for King Eradus and a fancy purple seat for his queen, though it lack the gold and it was smaller. Eradus was surprisingly tall and thin for a noble. Russell thought he would be some fat man but when he looked beside the king, he found a fat noble after all. He was surprised somebody could squeeze her into that dress and she clearly saw better days. His axe hand twitched.

"Who goes there?" King Eradus shouted. He tried to be intimidating but he was too thin and sickly looking for him to be frightening on any level. "Attack him!" he called to all of the guards in the room. They ran at him with their lances drawn, so Russell charged too, striking the first guard with a vertical slash, his axe going through their helmet. The soldier collapsed, their head split open, but the helmet was still stuck at the end of the axe. He frowned.

Russell dodged the incoming attacks and took a moment to dislodge the helmet from his axe. He let a lance graze his arm, the one attack that was outside of his right eye's peripheral but regardless, he took the helmet and hurled it. It hit the Queen's head, eliciting a scream that sent pleasure running through Russell's spine. He shoved the soldiers out of the way by slicing into their sides before breaking into a mad sprint. He reached the Queen before anybody could stop him, holding his axe above his head before bringing it down on the fat Queen. Killing her husband was easy enough, considering he was within reach of his axe when he reached to stop him. Russell had no idea what the king was truly to accomplish, going anywhere close to him unarmed but he was dead, so it didn't matter.

The guards stopped when they saw what had happened but by the time they recollected themselves, Russell and Reger were on them, taking advantage of their moment of surprise. They fell quickly, almost boring in how they barely held up a fight afterwards. Russell was excited before but he was already beginning to calm down. The bloodlust was already dying and it ultimately didn't last long. The battle just wasn't that long and the guards are not talented enough to entertain him for long. He was disappointed. He needed a real army to plow through, not just some guards. Where the fuck were they all anyway? He expected much more than they found.

A new figure came into the room, brandishing a thin but sharp sword. It was a young man, probably around the age of eighteen if Russell had to guess, but estimating ages was not his strong suit nor was it important. He had an effeminate frame, curly blonde hair that went just below his shoulders, and pretty brown eyes. He looked like a skinny, prettier version of the fat queen. Most of all, he had a circlet around his head and an expensive-looking purple tunic with silky black pants. A prince then. His face twisted into anger.

"How... how dare you!" he screamed, lunging his sword. Reger blocked with his weapon, then grabbed the prince's collar and threw him towards Russell. The kid surprisingly went from tripping to swinging, using the power behind Reger's throw to attack Russell. Russell blocked the attack and unlike most people in the castle, the prince swiftly dodged his next attack and cut Russell's leg with the sword. He wasn't bad at fighting, Russell noted when he dodged yet another attack. He was quick and perceptive, though he wasn't all that strong so the cuts weren't deep, but he was still hard to hit.

"Go make sure this brat doesn't have any siblings!" Russell commanded. Reger gleaned and ran out of the room. The prince's eyes went wide.

"I don't get it! What are you doing? WHY DID MY PARENTS HAVE TO DIE?" he shouted, going for a more critical area. Russell threw his arm in front of his stomach, preventing his sword from piercing his stomach by making it go through his arm instead and moving his arm away from himself. The prince gasped as Russell kicked him back, forcing his hands off of the sword. Russell pulled it out of his arm, then snapped the sword in half, resulting in minor cuts across his palms. He let the pieces fall to his feet.

"You put up a better fighter than anybody I faced here so far. Heh... just when I thought it was getting boring," Russell said with a smirk as he stepped over to the prince, then squatted down beside him, lifting his head up by pulling on his hair and covering it with his blood. He was too interested in the prince so he ignored his injuries for the time being. "I might keep you for a bit but I've never managed to control myself long enough to keep a pet before. I play too rough."

"I still don't understand..." he gasped. He had a defiant look to him, one that Russell rather liked. He couldn't resist sinking his teeth into the kid's shoulder, making him thrash in an effort to get out of his grip. The prince managed to grab something from the floor, and forced it into Russell's cheek – a shard from his broken sword, Russell realized. Russell laughed, grabbing both of his pet's wrists and forcing him onto his stomach. He held him with a knee to his back, one hand on his head, shoving his face into the floor, and one hand keeping his wrists bound.

"You don't have to. Everybody but the slaves are going to die, assuming they're not all dead already. My troops are just as crazy as I am, just not as strong. Say, what is your name? Or should I give you one?" he asked with a smirk.

He turned his head, so that he was resting his face on his cheek. "Calum."

"I'm not sure I like that name."

Reger came back, holding the body of a blonde girl by the arm. She certainly looked like his pet but he wasn't sure how many people were in the royal family.

"I should have asked somebody how many people were in the royal family," Russell mumbled.

Somebody else stepped into the room. He was wearing Zahan's colours in the form of long, flowing robes with a hood that looked, overall, complicated and fancy. Russell frowned – he wasn't super fond of mages, especially this one because he wore a silver mask. He didn't see the point to the mask and he certainly didn't trust anybody who hid behind a damn mask. He also held an engraved staff with a purple jewel at the top. The mask covered his entire face, save for his eyes, so Russell had nothing to really gauge from him and that only angered him more. He carefully stepped over the bodies, almost like he didn't want his stupid robes to be stained with the blood.

"My name is Veiser and I'm here to assure that you and your men have performed as expected. It looks your troops were thorough... are you going kill that one? He should be the last one in the royal family." His voice was muffled by the mask but he was still clear.

"Who sent you? Weinstrad?"

"Weinstrad, indeed. The prince?" he asked, gesturing towards the kid with his staff.

"He's my pet. I thought I would try to keep one for a while," Russell said proudly with a smirk. He didn't imagine Calum lasting too long as he had a bad habit of breaking his toys but Calum seemed stronger and more talented than the others who he considered 'toys', so hopefully he lasted longer. "He won't escape. I'll take care of that." He might have to break both of his legs to do it but that wasn't a big deal to him.

"I hope he keeps you entertained then," Veiser said with a nod. "It wouldn't do for you or your troops to get bored. More people would get hurt, no?" There was something about the way he spoke and moved that made Russell want to slug him. He was probably smiling if he had to guess and Russell had no idea why the mage would be pleased with the mess they made unless he was just as deprived as they were, but that didn't make sense to him either. Veiser seemed all high and mighty and for what? Because he could use magic? Magic for was the weak, or people who weren't strong enough to lift a real weapon.

"Pfft, like you need to worry about that. We killed everybody we needed to, unless more idiots decide to show up so you can just go fuck off now," he said with a growl.

"Oh, you don't like me?" Veiser asked. "It's the mask, isn't it? You see, I just feel safer with it on. I can show you my face if that makes you feel better around me though."

"The masks just makes you a coward," Russell growled. "And so does your stupid magic."

Veiser jerked his head to his side, his grip on his staff loosening. "I see. I know I'm the odd one out here but unfortunately for you, I'm required to stay here and make sure that these servants, or slaves as it would be in Fraedia, aren't killed or seriously maimed. After all, our Queen wants casualties of innocents to stay at a minimum. Beyond that, I don't care what you or your men need to do to entertain yourselves. I couldn't care less so long as they don't lose a limb or die. I'm going to find a room to sleep in for the evening, and I suggest you do the same when your get your wounds looked at. Those wounds would knock anybody else out."

With that, Veiser left, stepping over the bodies carefully.

"What are you going to do with me?" Calum asked, his voice still defiant.

"That depends. Are you going to be a good dog or a bad dog?"

However, Russell was left wondering about that mage. He didn't like him yet... he was curious. He brought himself to his feet and forced Calum to his feet.

"All of this death but no fun. It was a total buzzkill..." he said with a sigh, but a smirk crept across his face. "But there's another way I can have fun. Come along."

He made Calum lead him to Calum's bedroom and made a slave who hid there to fetch a basin of water, a cloth, and some bandages after assuring that no, she wasn't going to die if she left the room. He wanted fun but Veiser at least had a point when he said that his wounds had to be looked at and attended to, as he most of them worse of the course of the battle. He was never comfortable with magic, so he would rather have his wounds heal on their own and with stitches if necessary. He wasn't sure if he would rather have a staff or be bedridden for a while, but he would rather not think about it all.

When the slave came back, he dismissed him. "Calum, my wounds."

"I'm not going to treat your wounds-" Russell darted out of bed and put his hand around Calum's throat.

"Weak people always act like they're morally superior and self-sacrificing," he said with a grin, squeezing his throat tighter. "But I know that deep down, you want to live because we're selfish. You're going to be my bitch, got it?" For once, Calum looked looked scared but he still tried to hide it behind the ever present defiant look. Russell let go and sat down on the bed. He was surprised by its quality but he didn't say or show anything to betray it. Calum washed the wounds harshly and Russell was sure he made the wounds worse, at least they hurt a hell of a lot more, before he bandaged it all. Russell pulled the shard out of his cheek and made Calum washed that too, only it was never covered.

Russell locked the door and lounged on the bed, inviting Calum to come join him with a wild smirk on his face.

* * *

Asteria's presence in Adoss was long overdue. Even when most of her army was in motion, under the orders of her most of her generals, she ended up taking some troops back with her to Zahan for a short time since she needed to updated her council on the current plans and make sure that leaving her young brother and maternal uncle in charge of everything ultimately didn't hurt her and her reign. She trusted her uncle, as their opinions often aligned, but she wasn't so sure of her younger brother. In theory, he was smart and he too believed that The Barren was something to be used and not feared, but the biggest problem was his age. He may been too sensitive and may be easily pushed around by the other nobles because they knew how to get under people's skin. Nobles were a different battlefield. Ideally, he could be left alone but she ended up putting him in the care of her maternal uncle, setting them up to be co-rulers.

Erin was the only general truly with her but it was odd to call her a general, as she did not have any troops under her. No, she more or less gained the title due to her passion and insight around The Barren and the fact that Asteria couldn't come up with another suitable tile. Erin was also beginning to become somebody that Asteria admired as a friend, so she was glad that Erin was with her.

"There is one thing I don't quite understand, Milady," Erin said suddenly. Asteria had just arrived in the palace and went straight to her own quarters since it was late into the evening. Erin trailed behind her. She was fine with that, as her personal quarters were rather plain and she didn't have anything to hide anyway. Aside from the spaciousness and the quality of the materials in her bedroom, it did not really look like royalty resided there. Asteria made a beeline to her bed and began stripping the armour off for the night. Erin shut the door behind her and leaned against it. "I think you understand more about The Barren than I currently do... yet you ask me to study it anyway."

So she noticed after all. No, Erin's job was still important because she didn't want to get into more trouble than she could deal with and Erin was her fail-safe.

"There appears to be what ancient mages refer to as a 'great evil'. All of the rocks have been enchanted to form a seal, one which may fail at any moment and release whatever is sealed away. If there is some destructive force, then the reason for the toxicity observed for so long would make sense. I believe you already know this though, considering your sudden change in plans," Erin pointed out with a simple shrug. "Has the supposed-evil contact you?"

"You truly are smart," Asteria answered. "It hasn't told me all of its plans yet, but it said if we had headway on its plans and continue to help it, then I could redefine the boundaries of a New Zahan. I could take some of the fertile land that Adoss doesn't appreciate."

"Its plans call for the death of the other rulers and the capture of the oracle?" Erin asked, raising any eyebrow. Asteria was finally out of her armour, revealing simple yet elegant clothing underneath it all. She was never so dressed down in front of somebody from her army. She reached into her closet and pulled out a simple nightgown and began to change into it, even with Erin in the room. For some reason, she didn't mind if Erin saw her in her underclothing – she didn't have anything Erin never saw before. "What stops it from turning on you?"

"I thought about that actually... that's why I want you to research The Barren. I want you to find a weakness. I don't think it can talk to me or see my thoughts when I'm so far away from it. It can't act outside of the territory to which its is bound to, so we have time to discover something that will keep me safe. I trust you to be able to find this."

Erin huffed but a smirk spread a cross her face nonetheless. She didn't look she like appreciated the sudden challenge but nonetheless, it was a challenge and a challenge on her favourite subject nonetheless. "You are asking for a lot, Milady, considering you know only the basics of its plans."

"What does it sound like to you? What do you think its end goal is with what you know?" Asteria asked.

"It sounds like its trying to turn Haelin into a clean slate if all of the rulers have to be dead and boundaries can be redefined but I can't fathom why a clean slate is necessary. There's disparity, sure, but I hardly think that's preventable. What else do I know...?" she asked herself, hand on her chin. "If it was a 'great evil' and it caused all the toxic effects we saw earlier, then I doubt that mages alone would be able to take care of it. Maybe a group of ursurines were working with them, or perhaps even manaketes. Maybe whatever is sealed is a manakete and was taken down by other manaketes because I doubt anything else would be so troubling... but even then, not even manaketes are immortal. The best answer would be to kill it, not seal it away."

Erin seemed to be going off topic but Asteria was content in letting her puzzle it out, even if she had to do it out loud and Asteria couldn't understand where her train of thought was going. She didn't even bother to question what 'it' was and that was a big mistake on her part. She realized that she herself was in danger by agreeing with it but the biggest mistake was failing to try to find out more about it. If they knew what it was, then they could possibly figure out a motivation for a clean slate and then she could figure out how to protect itself.

"So it's either immortal or powerful enough to be immortal but not actually immortal?" Asteria asked.

"I mean, manaketes can be pretty strong but they're certainly not immortal, especially if you believe the rumours are Weinstrad. Apparently, he's quite the avid manakete hunter and some say he even bathes in their blood to try to reach immortal himself. If anybody knows about the mortality of manaketes, it would be him... that's why, unless it was super powerful, it doesn't make sense to seal it away. If we assume it's immortal, then we have no choice but to work with it anyway. If it's immortal, then it could be anything. I wonder if that's possible."

"Except we have nothing. If there is a great power, we don't know anything about it."

Erin looked pensive for a moment, but then it suddenly looked as though inspiration struck her. "Maybe we've been approaching history the wrong way."

Asteria blinked. While that seemed obvious, the fact that they had very little to go off of was a clear indicator of that, what choice did they have? It wasn't like they could go back in time and see what happened, or make those people write down they knew. By the time anybody began to care about written history, it was already too late. She didn't say anything though and merely waved at her to continue.

"Written history is useless to us... but perhaps not oral history. Whatever we may think is just be a fable may actually have some sort of relevant fact that we're missing. Fables usually have some origin based in truth or made to try and understand something, right?"

"Like how the Fraedians believe that a dragon saved their country?" Asteria asked, mostly to herself. She never thought of that way – she figured it was just some dumb reason to throw a party so that the general population would forget that they hated the nobility for a while. Aside from the supposed serpent that guarded Queen Raila, nothing strange ever seemed to come up. Asteria didn't read children's stories as a child so anything else was beyond her.

"Yes! Stuff like that!" she said with a grin. "Except that my parents thought that stories like that were a waste of time and energy. It was too bad, really!"

"I don't see why we wouldn't have tomes like that in our royal library," Asteria mumbled after some thought. She never read them, she was spending too much trying not be a child as a child, but she was sure her more-laid back brother liked to read them. She didn't use them but they must have existed in the castle somewhere. "Follow me, I'll let you in."

The royal library was, for the most part, locked up and only members of the royal family had the keys. There wasn't a lot of written history until relatively recently in history, but they still had valuable, one of a kind tomes, some that focused on the study of dark magic, anatomical studies, and the likes. It also had archives, yet those required another key, which only Asteria had. Her uncle and brother had a copy of the key that unlocked the royal library and Asteria had hers handy in one of her drawers in her desk. She pulled it out quickly, and even though she was only wearing what essentially amounted to a short nightgown, which just went above her knees and barely had any sleeves, she was out in the hallways with Erin following behind her.

Erin squealed when she saw the inside of the library. Apparently, she was not hard to please. The library had six, long shelves full of books on each side. There were two tables, three giant, yet comfortable chairs that sat in front of a fireplace that needed tending. While Erin ran into the aisles, Asteria approached the fireplace, which was faraway from the shelves, to go throw in some more wood and poke the embers. The fireplace didn't get tended to a lot, thanks to the fact that the room was usually locked, but somebody was in here previously so it didn't take much for the fire to begin roaring again. She wanted Erin to be comfortable.

"Erin, when you're done in here, let me know, even if you have to wake me up," Asteria shouted. She heard Erin shout back, so she left her in the room on her own.

* * *

 _I think this chapter MIGHT blur the lines between the T and M ratings but nothing is super explicit, so I think it's vague enough._

 _Anyway, I'm uploading this at 5:40am and with a headache. I caught a lot of things but I don't think I've ever uploaded an error-free chapter. It's just me after all. I'm also sorry to say that I have no progress with supports. I just wasn't feeling them at the moment._


	14. Support: Leigh and Garath

Sometimes, there was a lot of free time between setting up for camp for the night and packing up to leave in the morning. This was especially true when Igneous spent most of his time in curled up in his tent, too unwell to do much else. Gerben sat transformed in front of his tent and that was all the protection he needed. It was also getting late out, so people were beginning to turn in as well, Iniabi being one of the first ones to crawl into his tent. He was on patrol the night before, so it wasn't so odd that he was one of the first to go and those who were stuck with the patrols were typically one of the first ones in the bedroll the next night. Arder followed closely after.

Eventually, it was just Garath and himself, the two who were doing patrols for the night. Since it was still early in the night, they stuck to the fire pit, with Leigh on one side and Garath sat across from him. Leigh had no problems with Garath for the most part. He kept to himself, but he was also helpful, slowing himself down intentionally to accompany anybody who was falling behind on their travels. He didn't seem to contribute much to the conversations but when it came to helping out in any other regard, he was on top of it.

However, the one thing that did bother Leigh was that Garath seemed so familiar to him.

"Have we met before?" Leigh asked.

Garath offered a shrug. He either didn't know or wasn't willing to say it, but Leigh wasn't all that sure which one it was. "Perhaps. I've been around."

"I've stayed in Adoss all of my life, until well, now," Leigh muttered. "I spent most of my life in the military, just like my father did and just like my son."

"I didn't know you had a child," he mumbled simply. However, he did seem surprised – it was hard to read emotion from the squinted eyes alone but it was the tone and the change in posture. At least, he was expressive.

"Most people don't. I don't think even Igneous knows... my son is all grown up and he has been for a while. He has a family of his own but I haven't seen the grandchildren ever since I got assigned to Igneous." Leigh wasn't upset about this – his only son moved to the outer edge of the Adoss and lived along the coast, far from the The Barren and far from the action, so he was at least safe. He was also far from Dosia though, hence why Leigh hasn't seen him in so long. He was a tough man though, so Leigh wasn't worried. "If I think I know you though, it has to be through the military."

"I was in Adoss military for a while but I retired and travelled for a while. It's been a while since I retired but you must have been in the military long enough to see me come and go. I don't think we ever spoke but we might have seen each other while I was still on duty," Garath said, looking into the fire. A smile tugged at his lips and then he chuckled. "You know, I managed to get in when I was only sixteen. I faked all of my paperwork and impressed everybody, so nobody noticed or even asked."

"Some kids can fake it well enough, if they are built well and mature. I waited until I was eighteen but since my father was in the military, I was trained from a lot earlier. I can't say I'm in my prime anymore... I used to think that was why I was assigned to Igneous. The oracles always had bodyguards but the other two didn't need them, so I thought it was a way to let me know I was getting old, my last job before they force me to retire."

Garath looked up from the fire, tilting his head slightly. "What changed? You don't look so insecure anymore."

"I suppose I came to see him as my second son," Leigh answered fondly. "When I first met him, it was quite obvious he never had a caring, adult figure in his life. He could get very moody but not in an explosive way... he just seemed ragged and tried to hard too please. It was quite sad, really. I was told that oracles chose their guardians, so while I was assigned to him according to the military, they would have to pick somebody else if Igneous turned me away. I didn't understand what he saw in me, but I saw a boy who needed a parent. Sometimes we argue like a father and son duo, or at least that's how I look at it. I'm biased in that regard... I don't know how he views me."

"I would say he's very fond of you," Garath mumbled, tossing some wood into the dying flames. "It's not my place to say so, I haven't known either of you for that long, but Igneous quite clearly respects you, even if he's moody and doesn't want to talk to anybody. I don't think it's always apparent but the love is there. Just keep working at him... he's stressed and confused."

"You should give out advice more often."

Garah smiled. "I like to let people work things out on their own when possible. That's how people learn but it seems like you needed... something."

"I suppose I do. It's not like me to ramble about my personal problems," Leigh muttered. His personal problems were usually his own, especially considering what his job was. He felt it was imperative that his problems didn't become Igneous' problems because the poor boy had enough to deal with when it came to his own problems. What he told Garath weren't exactly problems but still, it was a lot more about his life than he was used to saying.

"Glad I could help then... but I think it's about time we make at least one loop camp, no?"

"Yes, it's about time."

Garath threw one more piece into the fire, and then they both got up, heading into separate directions.

* * *

 _I only have the time for a little tiny support here but at least these little supports gives me the opportunity to add a "HERE IS WHY I AM NOT UPDATING BUT I PROMISE THAT I AM ALIVE AND DIDN'T FORGOT" note at the end while giving you guys some relevant to read. I will never update a chapter with just an author's note because I hate it when people do that myself - no need to get anybody's hopes up. Rude._

 _For any of you who are interested, I'm in my fourth year as a biology major, going in for a fifth in September because I took too many Greek and Roman classes and fell behind (but hey, I have minor in that now). As you can guess, this means that eight months of the year, I'm busy with classes and assignments and in general, just being chronically stressed. For the other four months of the year, I go back to retail and being chronically stressed for different reasons. In other news, my stress tolerance is shot and it does not take much for me to get stressed anymore._

 _This is why I make no promises for updates, because I just don't know when I will have time or how motivated I will be to write when I do have time. I hold myself to the 'every main chapter will be at least 5k words' and I think I can only make an except with the supports because if they were also 5k long, they wouldn't happen._

 _So yes, updates are coming but they will take time. I will feel guilty for spending too much writing when I should be studying. I might be able to get a chapter up before May but you know me, no promises._


	15. The Start of a Party

Igneous didn't seem like he improved very much over the night. He slept for most of the previous day and the continued to sleep well into the morning. No one felt like waking him up, so Orla and Gerben situated him in a position where he was slumped over Elena's shoulder. If he was more awake, he would probably be on Caalya's pegasus but as it was, they didn't want him t sleep on her armour. They were coming up on a large city, with the most noticeable feature in the background being a large stone building.

"What's that building for?" Gerben asked.

"That's an arena," Charlie said with a smirk. "Hey, this might be a good chance to earn some good dough! Mercenaries like me don't run cheap."

"Make sure the gold notched though," Amaryllis mumbled. Saikur was sure that the pout was real when she said that. "Gold minted in any other country will always be trustworthy but gold coins in Fraedia may not always be gold on the inside. If you notch the coin, you can catch counterfeits. It's tedious work but you have to protect your earnings."

"So we have to worry about counterfeits in Fraedia too. This country is a mess," Arder muttered, placing his hand on one of the blades he kept on his side. "So we'll just have to be careful. I'd say we take that chance though. I know I can win."

Saikur nodded. He liked that idea – they could get Igneous somewhere to sleep while the rest of them earned gold through arena battles. They had plenty of gold but if they wanted to continue to hire people like Charlie and Amaryllis, then their gold would eventually run out. They had to factor in nights at inn when possible, keeping up weapon maintenance and replacing them as needed, and making sure they had food. He supposed they would need medicine as well but Elena seemed comfortable with herb identification, so she could probably find more if she needed to.

"I think most of us can hold our own in the area. That just leaves Igneous, Reina, Mira, and Elena," Saikur muttered. "Which means that Igneous can go sleep on a real bed, they can go look after him, and the rest of us will fight."

"Maybe you should take somebody with you," Leigh said, facing Elena.

"We'll be fine," Elena said with a smile adna dismissive wave of her hand. "Reina might be secretly an amazing warrior and Mira's got a sword and she's been training-"

"I... uh, don't think she's ready for combat yet," Arder mumbled.

"She'll be fine in a pinch!" Elena said, waving her hand. "And a staff will plenty enough too! It's a metal rod with a giant gemstone on the end, they still hurt."

Leigh simply nodded, removing a small coin purse from a satchel tied around his hip in one of the few places were armour didn't touch. "We'll have to get going tomorrow but Igneous can have a bed tonight," Leigh said at last. "This just what I have on my person. We can get more gold from the carts to place bets on the arena." He tossed the little purse at Mira, who gracefully caught it in her hands. Everything she did seemed to be graceful.

"I guess this means this is where we separate then. See you later, guys!" Elena said with a wave, putting her spotted horse into a trot slow enough for Mira and Reina to keep up.

The arena interior just felt dirty to Saikur. There was a lot of grime along the walls and when he leaned against the wall for while Leigh was taken care of registrations with a woman, he felt something slimy and immediately bounced off of the wall in disgust. Not even his childhood home was that gross – the only room that was filthy at all was the room of their mother because Saikur and his brother Sarrel refused to go in and clean it. His mother couldn't be bothered to care for anything. They managed to keep the rest of the home clean though, just so that they could use it.

The place also smelled bad – like sweat and rot. There were other smells too but he didn't dwell on those. The place was mostly dark on the inside, as it was only lit up with sparse torches. Everybody was first made to surrender any weapons and gear they already had, which were handed to the two ursurine since they were barred from fighting regular humans. From there, they were led into an armoury to pick out the most basics of weapons before being led to a short tunnel that lead to what Saikur soon realized was one of two warrior entrances to the arena. Everybody he was travelling with seemed to be on the same side he was. It seemed like fighters were just picked by having one person come from each entrance and since he was in the front of the line, he was pretty much going first.

Fun.

Charlie was behind him, looking a little bored with the whole thing while Arder was bouncing impatiently on his feet. Amaryllis seemed just as disgusted with the place as he was, tucking her hair into her hair quickly and pulling her hood up, yet she didn't seem surprised at the state of the place. Caalya was watching with a serious expression but she had tight grip on her lance, breathing deeply as she did so. Iniabi just looked impassive, like he was studying the arena. Saikur wondered if he would be alright with just a tome but he supposed that Iniabi wasn't built like a mage. He didn't look fragile.

The arena itself was rather open, or at least a lot more open then the lobby was. It was circular, with the audience under some sort of awning that provided shade, yet the circular dirt patch where the warriors fought did not have any sort of protection from the elements. If it rained, it probably just made for a better fight. A short, pudgy man walked to the centre of the arena and the audience cheered before the man gestured for both people to come to the centre.

Saikur walked. His opponent was taller than he was and a bit wider to boot but he wasn't sure how much of that was due to his size or due to the armour they wore. They were completely obscured by black armour, with large paulderons and a helmet that looked like it had small wings on the sides. They had a simple sword, like he had a simple axe, but they were clearly comfort with it.

"Introduce yourselves!" the man said loudly, his voice ringing out throughout the arena.

"Saikur," he answered simply.

"Zahreen," the other one answered. The voice was male, at least.

"You two know the rules, right?" the man asked them. "You fight until you surrender or incapacitated. Try your best not to kill each other. Go!"

Zahreen charged first, curving around the pudgy man who didn't have enough time to actually get out of the way. For a guy completely covered in armour, he was fast and surprisingly agile. He could move in his armour as if he was naked. Saikur barely had enough time bring his axe up but his opponent seemed to be able to predict his move and actually lowered his sword at the last second, striking Saikur's side just as Saikur brought his axe down on his armoured arm. Zahreen turned quickly on his heels, forcing Saikur to twist around quickly to avoid getting hit in his back, bringing his axe up to guard his face.

Saikur growled. He hated being on the defensive but it was all he could do to keep up. No matter how fast he was, he was only just fast enough to protect his vitals. Saikur even found himself in a strange routine – dodge, follow Zahreen's movements to get into position, then block. He couldn't even think about trying to attack because it would leave him open to a straight on attack instead of the smaller cuts he received when Zahreen would flick his wrist and manoeuvre his sword around his axe too quickly for Saikur to counter. Zahreen had amazing control with his sword and Saikur wondered what he would be like if he had a weapon he spent more than five minutes with.

"It looks like you thought you were tough shit, didn't you?" he asked with a chuckle, charging at him again. "It's fun to watch people like you fall apart in front of those who actually know a thing or two about wielding a weapon, though to your credit, you aren't too bad for somebody who looks like they should be using a stick. It's a wonder you can lift that axe at all!"

Saikur didn't dodge or block him but instead, sliced his axe downwards just as Zahreen had his sword within stabbing distance. Much like last time, the armour took the brunt of the damage but unlike last time, he managed to actually make a large, visible mark into the chest plate instead of just a scratch that could be polished out. Zahreen hesitated for a moment and Saikur wondered if he somehow made Zahreen mad. However, he went for the opportunity, charging forward for the first time, swinging his axe.

It felt liked time slowed when Zahreen dodged to the right and back a little. He firmly planted his right foot on the ground and next Saikur knew, an armoured foot collide with the side of his jaw, making him stumble backwards. He barely managed to hold onto his axe. Zahreen adjusted his position so that he was in front of him and delivered another kick to his chest, knocking him to the ground. He took a deep breath, forcing air back through his chest just as Zahreen propped one foot up on his chest and put the tip of the sword on it. It went through his tunic but it didn't puncture the skin. Not that it would take much effort on Zahreen for that change, though.

He felt like Zahreen was sneering at him, especially when Saikur had to roll his head to the side to spit a tooth out. His jaw may have even been cracked, or worse, broken. His opponent chuckled at him.

"I mean, I wouldn't get up if I were you, but then again... I've never been in such a humiliating position before. What do I know?" he asked, breaking out in laughter. Saikur growled but hissed in pain when Zahreen leaned some his weight onto his sword, pushing the tip into his stomach. "I never understood why the weak insist on fighting a losing battle. Honour and pride are stupid concepts to fight and die over. What are you trying to achieve by sticking around for so long?"

"I... GAH!" The sword was pushed in deeper. It hurt to even scream. "I surrender!"

The words leaving his mouth felt dirty. One loss might not be a big deal, yet... he failed. He felt that maybe, he should feel used to feeling dirty. Maybe he should be more hurt by Zahreen's words but he felt like he was used to that too and that maybe he would have to continue to get used to it. He slowly got to his feet, ignoring the pudgy man as he proclaimed Zahreen as the winner, holding a hand to the worst of the the wounds, but he realized that even the more shallow wounds were deeper than he thought.

Zahreen did a number on him.

Still, he managed to get out of the arena, moving past some worried allies. As much as they cared, he knew they couldn't help him with much, it wasn't like he couldn't walk and since everything but their armour had been removed, then nobody had a vulnerary.

He didn't feel like talking anyway. He couldn't believe that he lost, he couldn't believe he lost so badly. He barely hit Zahreen and barely made a dent in his armour. He left the battle unscathed and Saikur was left to lick his own wounds and contemplate his loss. He managed to find a somewhat clean wall, in a dark room, and just sat down, supporting most his weight against the wall since he was exhausted and injured.

Thinking about Zahreen made his stomach drop. There was something about losing to him that meant more than just losing and it filled him with an utter sense of dread. He supposed it was the first time he ever saw somebody who could pose a threat to Igneous. The oracles had guardians but it was only until recently that anybody ever made a move on the oracle in the entire history of oracles, but Igneous' injuries were not serious and the Zahan soldiers they fought went down easily. Dosia should be rebuilding nicely, assuming Zahan occupation hasn't gotten in the way of that. Zahan was just a name, he never saw them after that. He didn't lose a battle until he met Zahreen.

He was just a person but he scared him more than an entire army did. There were individuals out there who were scary. Saikur probably did think that he was 'tough shit' like Zahreen said. It wasn't on the forefront of his thoughts but there was nobody who beat him before.

Could they actually protect Igneous then?

Tears came to his eyes and poured down his cheeks. Crying felt like a pathetic thing for him to do. Why was he alone in a dark room crying when he could be getting his wounds healed or training to be somebody who could protect Igneous? Why he was so bothered by losing to Zahreen when his whole damn life was an uphill battle? He never cried then. He didn't shed a single tear when he was teased for the identity of his father being unknown because people from all over Adoss slept with his mother.

Come to think of it, he could also remember a couple of women hanging around his house a couple of times. His mother truly didn't care, so long as she was satisfied.

He stayed put until he became dizzy, probably from the blood loss. He got to his feet but instantly had to stabilize himself against the wall. Pathetic pathetic pathetic. If Saikur didn't spend so much time crying, he would have been able to get help himself. He felt somebody's arms go around his shoulders. He jumped.

"Saikur, relax. It's just me."

Saikur could recognize Leigh's voice anywhere.

"So this is where you ran off to. Come on, let's you get out of here."

"What about your fight?" he asked, making sure that he didn't move his jaw much while he spoke.

"That's not important," Leigh said. "The younger ones are the ones having fun with it. Charlie's a natural in there and Arder easily won his fight." Leigh was taller than Saikur was, so it was hard for Leigh to try and bend down to be a crutch. However, Saikur found enough support by grabbing onto Leigh's arm.

"So I'm the only one who lost then," he said bitterly. Three little words floated around in his head again, telling him something he already knew.

"Saikur, you're better than that! Whoever you lost to is probably somebody with Silcyian training. They were far from average. There is no reason to feel bad about yourself." Saikur wondered how Leigh could tell. Maybe somebody else could tell or maybe Leigh just guessed. The thought never went through his head though.

"What if somebody on Zahan's side is like Zahreen?" Saikur asked quietly as Leigh led them outside. "What if we can't protect Igneous?"

"We're going to get people like Zahreen on our side. That's why we are here. Maybe the three of us couldn't beat somebody like them but I wouldn't discount everybody who is already on our side, Saikur. It's not just us three anymore and they are here to protect him too, if for different reason than we are. You have to believe in them too."

Saikur stayed silent after that.

* * *

"I forgot what quiet was like," Darren muttered as he shed his armour and jumped into the bed. With Zahreen gone and fighting in an arena to earn some money 'and to make sure being around incompetent fighters for so long didn't affect him', the other three could have some time to think without his commentary. Darren didn't care about the second reason so much as he cared about the temporary peace and quiet he got. His ankle must have pretty busted up since it still hurt, even with the extra support and all of the time he spent off of it. He only stepped on it wrong, so why it was so bad? He supposed that his left ankle was always a little weak but he had no idea what he did to it that it ended up like that in the first place.

Maybe he broke it as a child.

Even Zahreen had run out of original things to say about his ankle, so he stopped talking about it, citing that he didn't just want to use the same insult over and over again. He had standards, apparently.

"It looks like we got neighbours," Ajax mumbled as he walked into the room.

"It looks like we need to mind ourselves then," Fara said with a mere shrug.

"Actually, I think we should go introduce ourselves," Ajax muttered, the look on his face going serious. "I don't think it was just anybody next door. I haven't seen the oracle personally but the guy they were leading in looked like what I imagine the oracle to be like."

Darren shot up into a sitting position. "Are you serious? You think you saw the oracle? You better not be shitting me, Ajax!"

Ajax shook his head and chuckled a little. "Why would I go do that? Maybe if I described who I saw, you could confirm yourself? The whole reason why we could get out of Adoss was because you saw him personally, right?"

He had a point. The oracle looked rather exotic, even compared to the Fraedians. They had, on average, the darker skin like he did, but he had yet to see anybody that really reminded Darren of the oracle. He didn't really understand how he could see so many people and yet, the oracle was so special that he could stick out in a sea of people. Darren waved his hand at Ajax, urging him to continue.

And the more Ajax described who he saw, the more convinced Darren was that it really was the oracle. He did want to confront him, at least to lash out at him, just to have somebody to be angry at. He knew that oracle had nothing to with his father's death and Zahan's invasion, he was just the messenger. All of that stuff would probably have happened whether they knew they were going to happen or not.

But he wanted to scream at somebody and the oracle was just the person he felt like yelling at. Ajax and Fara didn't deserve it since they helped him along the way so much. Zahreen would probably just laugh at him and he didn't need that.

Yet, the oracle didn't deserve it either. Who should he scream at then?

Darren sighed. He hated the whole situation. He wished that Zahan never attacked, even if he wasn't there for it. He hated that he didn't know what was going with his sister, other than hoping she was alive and well. He knew his father was dead and he barely had time to say goodbye to him. He felt like he never got enough time with his father, he could say goodbye forever if he had the chance to. He didn't hate that he had to do so much to save his kingdom but he hated that he had to do it in the first place. His kingdom shouldn't be in danger.

He hated everything about his situation.

"Is that him then, Darren?" Fara asked, as he let her hair loose. She was stripped of her armour, and Darren never got tired of seeing her more casual self. The serious trainer that she usually was disappeared when she took all of her armour off. She could still be serious but she smiled more and Zahreen's words didn't seem to bother as much. Ajax was in the middle of getting it all off but his personality didn't change all that much, outside of being a bit more relaxed. He was always aware and Darren could appreciate that.

"Sounds like him... he's a special little prick, that guy is. You haven't met him either, Fara?"

"Nah, I was always busy with my training. I'm not sure if I could afford his services either. Did your father have to pay for him?"

"I believe he did. It was a handy of way of my father being able to find out what he can do to help the country with direct interact with the oracle, while being able to discreetly hide gold from the castle coffers to the secretive temple coffers. Apparently, there are only three people in the temple that know where all the gold is, and their only goal is to use it for maintenance of the temple and for the direct benefit of all those who need it. My father could always dip into the funds if he need the extra gold for the benefit of the people and those priests would hold him to it."

"Do you think you are allowed to go into those coffers to pay off the mercenaries who help you get the kingdom back then?" Ajax asked as he ran a hand through his hair.

"I'm hoping but if Zahan does any damage than that gold should go to that. I'm not sure what Zahan is planning so I shouldn't rely on it," Darren answered, shaking his head. "I dunno how to make that sort of gold. I have to assume that Zahan will take the castle coffers."

"Hmm." Ajax put a hand on his chin. "I don't think they would be interested in everything in the castle. There are surely things you can liquidate for gold once you get there. It could be that Zahan isn't even after the gold after all. From what I know, they can make decent amount of gold selling ores and weapons to other countries... that, or they would trade for some food items in addition with a little bit of gold. Zahan always values food more than gold when it comes to trades."

Darren blinked. Why didn't he think of that? He studied the trading patterns of other countries before too. Zahan and Adoss were obligate trading partners, considering that The Barren made trading with other countries difficult. Adoss was good at producing food and Zahan was always in need of it due to the lack of fertile land.

"You could also get loans from other countries, which is better than being in debt to mercenaries. I'm sure other countries would help you out if they could... maybe not Fraedia but Vedia and Silcyia might help. You could also make Zahan pay for any damages but considering their attitude, that might be throwing oil into a well-burning fire."

"I had no idea you know so much of politics," Fara mumbled, her eyes wide. "I'm good with a lance but sheesh."

Ajax shrugged. "I'm still from nobility, despite my family's relatively low ranking. I had to learn all of these things before my father really felt comfortable about the idea of me being the military. I'm lucky I didn't forget, really. At any rate, maybe you should say hello to the oracle?"

"I'm not sure anymore," he muttered quietly as he lied down, arms folded behind his head. "I know I will blow up in his face but I can't help thinking that this is what we should be doing. We can pool our resources and we're probably out here for similar goals. There is no reason we should be apart but it's so damn hard to not blame him for my father's death."

Fara looked at him with a sad look. "Should we talk to him?"

"At least consult him, yes," Darren said with a wave of his hand. The two of them nodded and left the room, so Darren dozed off.

However, he wasn't asleep for long. When he woke up because he thought he heard Fara and Ajax coming back, he found that the curtains were moving, as if somebody opened the window but it was still closed. He was about to doze off again when he noticed a shadow on the ceiling. He squinted, then rolled out of the bed just in time to see somebody jump from the ceiling and onto the bed with a steel blade in hand. Darren had a feeling that the blade was pointed towards him but when he moved, the figure changed the position of their blade in order to spare the mattress. Something jingled when they landed. The figured flicked their wrist, prepared to jump at him again.

"Hey hey hey! Maybe we can talk before you keep trying to kill me?" Darren shouted before he even got to his feet. However, it did make the other figure pause. When he could spare a glance at them, he noticed mostly the cloak, which was a mottled red colour. He had black boots and black pants and they had a black shirt but besides that, Darren couldn't see much.

"Are you going to beat Zahan's price? They have your gold, don't they?"

"Like we would keep all of our gold at the castle..." Darren muttered. "I'll beat any price Zahan gives you to kill me if you protect me instead."

The figure turned around on the bed. From under the hood on the mottled cloak, he could see golden coloured bangs, sitting above bright blue eyes that made Darren nervous with their depth. They seemed to be wearing a fitted, slightly inflexible black shirt and a golden bell attached to a silver chain around his neck. However, Darren was pretty sure that the person was male, even with the dark red, padded vest. His would-be assassin was clearly debating the price in his mind. He wasn't sure if he should trust somebody who was so loose with their loyalty – he was obviously on the side with the best price. Even Zahreen seemed completely loyal to the one contract but maybe that wasn't true of him either.

"It's a deal then!" he said with a grin as the threw his hood back. His golden hair extended well past his shoulders, brushed back over his ears. "My name is-"

He was interrupted when Fara walked in the room. "The oracle is – who the heck is that?" she shouted, pointing at the assassin with her finger, while her other hand was clutched into a fist.

"My name is Charles!" he answered, getting up from the bed to offer Fara a hand. "I've been commissioned to join your side. It should be quite the party compared to just a simple assassination job."

"As, simple sassination job? You just tried to kill Darren! Why should we trust you?" Fara kept her voice loud, marching her way to Charles, and to his credit, he didn't move or drop the smile on his face.

"He's going to beat every offer," he said with a charming smile.

Fara looked away from Charles and gave Darren the 'is this a good idea face?'. He shrugged. Again, he wasn't sure if he could necessarily afford having a bunch of mercenary bodyguards but buying Charles' loyalty was the only way to save his life. The relaxed and cheerful demeanour Charles held after he accepted their offer was a stark contrast to the person who probably broke into his room through his window and hid himself on a ceiling beam until he was ready to pounce, all with complete. Darren only survived because he happened to look up in time. With the way his ankle was, there was a good chance he wouldn't have made it out of the room before Charles pounced on him again.

But having both Charles and Zahreen on board was going to be a drain on assets, that was sure.

"Anyway, what were you saying about the oracle?"

"It is the oracle next door," Fara said, choosing to ignore Charles, even when he when he seemed to be inspecting Darren closely, eve bending down to poke his bad ankle. "But apparently he came down with a fever, so he's resting right now. Ajax is talking to the one priestess from the temple that came with him. I think joining up would be the best for both of the groups, even if you can't get past your differences. Apparently, the oracle was left with decent funds to pay for mercenaries."

"The oracle is close to us, huh? Interesting," Charles muttered, his smiling fading for a brief moment. He looked to be in thought but either way, he was certainly interested in something.

"So is the oracle unprotected right now?"

"None of the women with him looked to be fighters. Other than Ajax, nobody with apparent combat experience happens to be with them. I think they mentioned..." she paused for a moment, her eyes going wide. "The est of them are at the arena!"

"Oh, shit. Zahreen's there."

Both he and Fara had the same idea because they booked it out of the room, leaving Charles all by himself as they ran out of the inn. Darren didn't have anything on his feet and his ankle screamed in protest from the sudden exertion. They received strange looks and angry shouts from all of the villagers as they sprinted past them, but they managed to make it the arena in record time. The hard part was finding him though. If he was in a battle, he probably wouldn't be too long, but what if he was fighting one of the oracle's retainers?

Or what if he already fought one?

"Are you here to sign up for a fight?" somebody at the counter asked. The person at the counter was a woman who looked like she would rather be watching the fights than signing people up for them.

"We're just looking for our friend. He's one of the fighters."

"You're free to go around back so long as you don't set foot in the arena," the woman said, waving her hand dismissively. They didn't have weapons, so they went to the back, calling for Zahreen's name. Eventually, they got a response and Zahreen walked right up to them with a dinky iron sword in hand. Darren could see a small notch his chestplate, even in the limited lighting and Zahreen seemed to hate its existence more than anything else. He already fought then.

"What brings you here?" he asked, the usual mocking tone replaced with what sounded like genuine curiosity. Maybe the curiosity itself was mocking him though. Darren was sure that everything that came out of Zahreen's helmet was somehow undermining everything around him.

"The oracle is staying at the same inn we are – hey, stop laughing! We don't want you killing or maiming any of his retainers who are here too. We're probably going to group and pool your resources." Darren frowned when Zahreen laughed even harder.

"You might be a little late for that. I already wrecked somebody."

"Maybe they're not one of the oracle's retainers?" Fara offered but not even she seemed to believe her own words.

"There's a good chance they probably were. How badly did you hurt them?" Darren asked. He felt like he was a parent talking to a child who pushed another child.

"He's not going to die," he said with a shrug. He was being strangely cooperative – hopefully he wasn't just saving up all of his insults. "I'd be surprised if he could talk."

"C'mon, we're pulling out. Let's try to find the oracle's retainers here," Darren muttered. Zahreen snickered a little while shrugging again, following the two of them without an insult.

* * *

 _I'm done with school for now but I'm pulling a lot of hours at work and retail is not good for creativity._

 _Anyway, feel free to suggest possible supports you want to see, such as characters you may feel are currently a little underdeveloped or characters you just want to see more of! I also want to give Igneous more piercings - apparently a tongue piercing has a ritualistic purpose for the Aztecs and Mayans but they may not have been permanent? All I can imagine is that Igneous would lose the piercing because it would get all infected and gross._


	16. Clarity

"Okay, explain this all again." Igneous was naturally confused when he woke up in the inn while the sun was still out, but Reina told him not worry and just go back to sleep, so he did. So when he woke up the second time, feeling more or less normal again, and left the inn with Reina to find the campsite outside of the village, he was confused by everything. The group was not only bigger but also included Darren for some reason and Saikur did not have horrible bruising on one side of his face when Igneous last saw him.

Gerben and Leigh both tried to explain it all but he got too distracted by Darren glarig at him to pay attention to what they had been saying. Gerben looked back, noticed Darren in the distance, and transformed suddenly. He stepped into Igneous' vision and stepped close to him, close enough that Igneous could see his own reflection in Gerben's eyes. Naturally, Igneous couldn't see anything else, just Gerben.

"We stopped by this village because of the arena. We decided to leave you at the inn with the ones who couldn't fight, and Darren and his team had a similar idea. Saikur and the mercenary Darren hired faced off, and that's why Saikur's face is like that. It actually looks a lot better today than it was yesterday," Leigh mumbled. "We just decided to group together and share our resources. We have similar goals."

"I suppose," Igneous muttered. He was not looking forward to interacting with Darren at all – he was sure that he blamed him for everything that happened.

"But you feel better now, do you?" Leigh asked.

"Yeah, just a little hungry," Igneous answered with a nod. Actually, he was starving. He wasn't sure when he last ate but it had been at least a whole day. Come to think of it, he could barely remember what happened the night before, and he was sure he probably lost a day somewhere between originally coming down with the fever and the night before. Did he eat then and just not remember it? "We're not leaving immediately, right? I'd like a chance to eat first."

"That's fine," Leigh said with a nod. He was a little confused with how easily Leigh went along with it. He expected that Leigh would make them move forward and he could eat on the road. He was always making them move forward but for once, it was alright to stay for a little. He looked to Gerben, who couldn't speak as in bear form, but he was nodded eagerly.

"Really?"

"Yes, it's fine. We didn't get a chance to eat yet anyway. Will and Orla are out hunting for some fresh meat, so we will are going to be waiting anyway," Leigh explained. Igneous looked around quickly and did found that Orla and Will were indeed gone. They probably had enough money to purchase fresh meat but maybe Will and Orla just wanted to hunt. Will certainly had that look to him and his aim was pretty good.

"So how did everybody else do at the arena?" Igneous, deciding to turn the conversation to a new direction. He was genuinely a little curious though. It was obvious that Saikur lost, and he could tell that Saikur was very much bothered by that. He could tell just by looking at him that he was very upset and wanted to be alone, but knowing Saikur, he was also beating himself up over his loss. It would make Igneous happy that nobody else was feeling bad about any loses.

"Everybody aside from Saikur that participated won. I dropped out to tend to Saikur and Garath dropped out as well, since he was worried about Saikur. We didn't get refunds on what we paid, so we technically suffered three losses but the amount of wins we got collectively was more than worth while. We're trying to get Saikur to understand this but he's not listening to us."

"I'll go talk to him then," Igneous mumbled, quickly making his way to Saikur. He was sitting outside of his tent, obsessively cleaning his axe. He didn't even look up when Igneous approached, whether it was in shame or because he truly didn't notice, Igneous didn't know.

"Saikur?"

His head shot up. He smiled a little. "Feeling better already?"

"My fevers never last long," Igneous said with a shrug. He found it strange but he was thankful for it. If it lasted longer, it would have seriously impeded their journey. "Leigh told me what happened."

Saikur looked down again. "I'm sorry about that. I should have been strong enough to beat that guy. I don't deserve to call myself a guardian of anybody."

Igneous blinked. He couldn't recall his friend ever berating himself like that, so it was surprising to hear. The situation never really came up, he realized, for Saikur to feel bad about himself ever since he relocated to the temple, but still. It was new and horrifying.

"That doesn't matter, Saikur. Losing doesn't matter. I didn't choose my guardians based on if they could protect me," he stated. Saikur, Leigh, and Gerben were all talented when it came to combat but for most the time that they've been around, 'guardian' was the wrong word. He thought of them more as companions, people who made his life better with their presence in their own way. Saikur was best friend, plain and simple. They had each other's back and he was fun to be around when he was acting like himself. Leigh was the only person who he could view as a parental figure, since the more elderly priests acted more like caretakers. They fed and clothed him, took care of any of his needs in that regard, but they didn't raise him. Leigh did that. Gerben was just fun to be around too, somebody who reminded people to relax a little and he was wise in his own ways. He was the only person Igneous knew for a long time who came a place outside of Adoss and he was also the only ursurine. There was a lot about him that just fascinated Igneous when he was younger.

He didn't know where the word 'guardian' came from, at least who applied to the oracles, but it was only recently that they ever had to engage in the combat they were trained for. For once, they had to stand up to that title.

"Of course it matters! What if you died? What if somebody killed you because I couldn't do anything?" Saikur was visibly shaken.

"I'm not useful to anybody dead, Saikur. If I die, it could take years for anybody to raise a new oracle. I don't know what they want but surely I have more value alive. I'm more worried about everybody else!" he said, raising his voice a little. "I don't care that you lost, Saikur. You're not any of less of a capable fighter because somebody with more experience and skill beat you. We're both only sixteen, we have a lot of time to get better at our crafts. Use this opportunity to ask for help, ask others for ways to improve. Have them explain your weakness and work on them. This should be a beginning!"

Saikur gave him a strange look, his expression softer, but there was still something dark and wrong. Igneous sat down, crossing his legs and putting his hands on his knees.

"How do you have to improve?" he asked, his voice curious.

"I have to discover more about it. I need to start learning about things on my own. For the longest time, I just took whatever everybody had to say about my powers as fact. There's a lot more to my powers than just seeing the future, I think, and now that I'm out here, I have to try and discover every facet of it. I'm not like the other oracles, so what happened with their powers might not be very applicable to me..." Igneous mumbled.

Saikur squinted, putting his axe down and turning himself to face Igneous. "You wouldn't be saying this if you already didn't discover something."

"Ah, well, I didn't want to really say anything until I looked into it more... but I could instantly read the other language in those tomes. Inabi had to correct my pronunciation all the time but I could look at the language and understand every word of it. It was my first time looking at it too. It makes me realize that I just don't know anything about what I can do and it feels like I don't know anything about myself," he answered, looking down at his feet. He didn't say all the thoughts that came to mind. He didn't tell Saikur that sometimes, it felt like he was only defined by his powers, either because he had them or because he was different from the other two people who had the same powers.

"Just, wow," Saikur mumbled, his eyes wide with excitement. Whatever upset he was feeling before disappeared, or at least it was off his mind for a while. "But speaking of your powers, you never did tell me what you saw when you held my hand back at the temple."

Igneous felt his cheeks burn and he hoped that it wasn't visible. Maybe his skin was just dark enough to hide it. He didn't think it was his place to really tell Saikur what he saw, as strange as it sounded. It would just take everything away from him and he didn't know if Saikur was even ready to hear it. Saikur frowned.

"What? What was it?"

"I think you have to figure it out."

"Figure what out? I know your visions are cryptic sometimes but even then, you would give people more of a clue than that, wouldn't you? I don't even what I should be looking for!" Saikur was always kind of pale unfortunately, so Igneous could see his face turn red.

"I know, I know! It's just that... well... never mind. Forget you even asked!"

"What was it? C'mon!"

"There's a good reason I'm not telling you! I promise you! I think you would be angry if I told you instead of you figuring it out!"

Saikur's cheeks were still burning as his eyes widened and he looked away quickly. "You think I would be mad." It was so quiet that Igneous could barely hear it, so he figured that he was not intended to hear it. He looked at Igneous again and he looked like he wanted to say something, but he didn't open his mouth again. Igneous frowned, focusing his attention of his hands and feet. For the first time that day, he realized that he didn't have any bracelets or rings on. He was sure he was wearing only clothes. He ran a hand up to touch his ears.

No earrings either.

Saikur caught him. "Seriously, you look fine without all of that stuff."

"But I like that stuff!" He couldn't say why he focused on vanity so much, it was just something he liked to do. It was fun to dress himself up and he liked looking pretty. He knew that even without all of the jewellery, he didn't look exactly plain, he only looked plain to himself.

"It won't kill you to not have all the stuff for a day. You look fine the way you are."

"I suppose," he mumbled, mostly because he didn't even know where his bag of jewellery was. If it was packed away in the wagon, then his vanity wasn't exactly the best excuse to make somebody dig it out. He didn't want to inconvenience anybody like that.

"Hey, you two," Gerben muttered suddenly, coming up from behind Igneous. He was back in his human form. "Breakfast is ready. You should get something to eat, Iggy. And try to eat if you can, I guess, Saikur."

Saikur scoffed but they got up together and headed to the fire pit with Gerben. The fire pit was awkward, in that everybody seemed to be forming plans in an effort to keep Darren and Igneous from talking to each other. He was sure that not everybody was in on it but they also didn't allow for silence. Darren glared at him and Igneous returned the glares. He could figure out why Darren wasn't fond of him and he didn't appreciate being the scapegoat for all of his problems. None of it was his fault anyway.

Leigh just kept talking. Amaryllis, a blonde man that Igneous didn't know, and Charlie were all talking about all the best spots to pick up mercenaries. By the looks of it, they were going to the capital but there was something about the capital that just didn't sit right with him. There was something wrong but there wasn't one thing he could think of that was wrong, just it was. Maybe it just wasn't the capital though. Maybe the fact that he was out there at all just felt wrong.

He wished he had more than just a vague feeling.

* * *

Getting a four-year-old ready for the day was hard enough but it was a little different when you lived in a desert. Feia wasn't the most cooperative child in the world, though most children were far from cooperative anyway. She didn't want her cloak and Flint felt like part of that was seeing her mother go without one, since she was a Silcyian native and her family had a rich history in Silycia. She was fine with covering herself in the soft, translucent fabrics that Silycia was known for. On the other hand, Flint was not. He moved from Adoss to Silcyia when he was young, not young enough to forget his time in Adoss and most importantly, why they moved to Adoss.

So he needed the cloak. He was pale and didn't tan very much despite being in Silycia for more than half of his life. He just burned instead. His daughter ended up looking much like her mother, with her dark hair and her darker skin, but her skin was lighter than her mother's, thanks to Flint's foreignness. She may not need the cloak after all but it was a precaution.

"Don't you want to see Grandpa?" he asked.

She lit up. "Grandpa!" she shouted excitedly. It was much easier to manoeuvre a little cloak over her head after that. When she finally ready, he threw on his own cloak and lifted her up, leaving the home he shared with his wife and heading down the busy street into his father's home.

It was quite the walk and he never got tired of it. He lived in Menfer, which was where the royal palace was in Silcyia. As such, it was a busy town. The city was set up right beside the largest river in Silcyia, with the palace on one side and the city on the other side. Some of it was diverted into the city itself somehow, but Flint wasn't sure how it worked. The central part of the city had the diverted river run through it and it was also where marketplace sat. Flint passed by many stalls, selling all sorts of different things that were mostly native to Silcyia but he could see things that reminded him of Adoss too.

Beyond the market were all the houses, which were close together and made of tanned stone but somehow, everybody made it look cozy. They were two stories, square in shape, with windows and doors carved out and curtains put in place, curtains made from fabrics of a quality Flint couldn't remember seeing in Adoss. The fabrics were one way to separate your house from others, but people also used paints, urns, and beaded decorations that hung from the outside of house. His wife was especially fond of paint, a bright fiery red.

His father's house was rather plain. It was almost like he didn't have the heart to really call Silycia his home. He pushed the curtains aside, expecting to find his father drunk but instead, he was sitting down in a chair in the main room, reading a book. His father was not much of a reader, so it was a surprise to see him reading instead of drinking, which he normally did this time of year. The main room was kept the same from when he grew up in there, completely functional and almost nothing else. There was a table and chairs in the living area and a table and chairs in the kitchen area to prepare and eat food. He had a single, potted plant by one of the windows and that was it.

"Ah, Flint... and Feia!" he put the book down and jumped out of his chair, kneeling down on one knee. He lowered Feia to the ground and she ran into her grandfather for a hug. "What brings you here, Flint?"

"I thought you would be worse," Flint mumbled. "Last year, you were too drunk to get off your bed. Actually, that is mostly you the same time every year since I moved out of the house. Jade tells me everything!"

Father smiled sadly, petting his hand through Feia's hair with one hand and lifting her with the other. "I know... it was bad. I hope you never to have feel the pain of losing a child, Flint. It's an awful feeling. And to lose your wife at the same time."

"They never found Mica's body, right? Maybe he's still alive?" He wasn't sure how much of the conversation Feia could actually understand. He hoped it wasn't much. However, she didn't look like she cared much. She had her hear resting on Father's shoulder, like she was being rocked to sleep.

"He was barely a toddler. I doubt those bandits would have kept him, so he was probably abandoned and left for dead. I would love it if he were alive somewhere but I know the chances are low and I don't want to get my hopes up," he answered softly, settling back into his chair with Feia still wrapped up in her arms. "Was there an actual reason for you to come here?"

"I know you're not busy, so I was hoping you could watch her for a bit while I ran some errands." It wasn't a complete lie. His wife, Rana, worked as a guard in the one of the noble houses, so she was gone for most of the day. Flint mostly stayed home with Feia, earning an income by repairing or fashioning bows and selling them to a noble, but he had to acquire supplies and buy everything their household needed. He was the domestic one after all.

"You thought I would be moping around and you brought her to cheer me up, no?"

"That's true too. But I do need to run errands. You're retired anyway," Flint said with a shrug. His father earned a living as a trainer after training himself for many years. It wasn't a hard jump to go from cutting down trees for a living to cutting down people instead. He retired a year ago after obtaining an injury that took him out of the action, although he still offered some advice to those who sought him out. He made a great babysitter.

"Off you go then," Father said, waving a hand dismissively. Flint waved goodbye and walked outside. He automatically steered himself towards Vakyli's residence. He knew there was only a small chance of seeing her, she was the only daughter of a nobleman and she kept herself busy with her work as a merchant. However, she was also his go-to person when he needed materials, since she offered a good price for him so long as he exclusively sold his bows to her – either for her own use or to sell.

Vakyli was usually more than happy to see him or his sister, Jade, since she was always asking for herbs or medicines outside of Silcyia, but it was hard to get through the guards and even you got through the guards, then you had to deal with Zael. He always seemed to be around whenever it seemed like somebody might want to speak business with Vakyli and he was her bodyguard, so he supposed it made sense in a way, but she was usually on her own property. He wasn't necessarily needed then and yet, he was there.

Flint always got the feeling that Zael didn't like him, or like anybody that Vakyli dealt with anyway. He always looked a little annoyed.

Luckily, she was only outside by the time he arrived, setting her horse up for a trip. Vakyli was a beautiful girl, with her deep red hair, her skin tanned lightly, and her bright green eyes. She was wearing chain mail under a tunic, pants, and plates that covered her shoulders and legs. They weren't what she normally wore but it was what she wore when she was leaving the country. She usually wore flowing, expensive fabrics, the translucent, and airy kind of fabric. It was exotic looking outside of Silcyia but inside of it, it was normal. Not every woman wore them but a good portion of them did. She had a sword on her hip but she also had a quiver on her back.

Zael was beside her, preparing his pegasus for the trip but he looked odd standing beside Vakyli because while she was attractive by most standards, Zael was not. He was quite plain looking, with brown hair and tanned skin, except for the fact that his arms seemed longer than they ought to be, his sunken cheeks, and the fact that he seemed too thin for somebody his height. Flint was a little taller than average but Zael was still tall enough that Flint had to look up to meet his eyes. He was lanky, that was word Flint decided to settle on. He wore the same sort of outfit that Vakylie did – a green tunic with short sleeves, brown pants, plates on his shins and shoulders, and he seemed to wear chain mail and leather to protect himself. He had a leather pouch on his hip, one that was booked shaped.

However, there was also somebody else that Flint never saw before. People in the desert may not necessarily know each other but they recognized each other, so foreigners and new people stuck out like sore thumbs. Flint knew what it was like to be on that side all too well. The newcomer had dark messy hair, dark brown eyes, and grey armour. He was pale and a little sunburned by the looks of it, so Flint figured he wasn't in Silcyia for long but he had to wonder why this man didn't protect himself with a cloak like Flint did. He was also lanky but he seemed to be of average height at least. Beside him was a black wyvern who seemed to be a bit on the small side. They seemed to just be there though, they weren't preparing like Zael and Vakyli were.

Vakyli noticed him immediately. She stepped away from her horse and walked over quickly. Zael didn't move but he watched carefully. "Ah, Flint. Good timing, I was just about to leave. Do you need me to get you anything?"

"I was hoping you had more steel or silver for bows."

"I will have to pick some more up. I'm assuming you want your usual amount?" she asked, quick and to the point as she usually was when she was speaking of business.

"Of course. You usually don't leave the country this time of the month, though. Did something happen?" he asked. She usually left at the end of a month and return at the beginning of the month, so it was odd for her to leave in the middle.

She nodded. "According to a spy of the royal families and to Alvis," she gestured at the newcomer, "Zahan invaded Adoss and killed the king and his children seemed unaccounted for. Apparently they haven't changed anything yet but I have to see what's going on with my own eyes. It wouldn't take much for Zahan to change something and make trading harder for everybody else. It's a shame, Adoss grew a lot of grain."

Flint blinked. He knew Zahan was desperate for some new land and they seemed freakishly patriotic at times but he didn't think Zahan would actually invade anybody. He hadn't lived in Adoss in years but he was born there so he still cared about what happened to it. "What the heck do they want with Adoss?"

"Yeah, Alvis, what does Zahan want?" Zael asked dryly.

"I... don't know. They were just going to conquer The Barren and then suddenly, they were invading Adoss. I didn't wait for a reason," he said, throwing his hands up in front of him defensively.

"Whatever the reason is, we have to figure out their rules and try to abide by them or else, things will get a little messy," Vakyli stated. She looked a little worried, although she also looked like she wasn't trying to get worried. "At any rate, we should get going."

"Vakyli, might it be possible that I could stay here?" Alvis asked suddenly.

"If you're not here to work, what the heck are you doing?"

"Calm down, Zael. I would prefer if you came along, since your wyvern could be very useful," she mumbled as she jumped onto her horse. "However, since I may not actually end up trading anyway, then you can stay here and do as my father says. I'm sure he could use you two for something."

With that, they left, with Zael's pegasus trotting beside Vakyli's horse. Flint felt awkward standing outside, on her property alone with Alvis but he was curious about him.

"How did you end up getting work with Vakyli and her father anyway?" Flint asked.

"I offered to work for room and board!" Flint could believe that one. Many would make that offer too but Vakyli would be the one to see potential in anything, so he was sure that neither her father or her would agree unless they thought Alvis was useful. However, he couldn't help but to notice that he seemed rather jumpy and his gestures seemed on the defensive side. "And thankfully, they said yes."

"I see," he mumbled. "Well, I hope it goes well. See you later."

With that, Flint left quickly. After all, he still hard other errands to complete.

* * *

Her visit to Adoss was long overdue, to the point where she left Erin behind when she wanted to scour the libraries a bit more. Asteria knew that but she could not exactly help her schedule. She and Erin were moving as fast as they could but with meetings she had to handle in Zahan, making sure that the people she left in charge were on the same page as she was, she had to spend more time in Zahan than she wanted to. She was beginning to get the feeling that she wasn't going to see much action though.

Asteria didn't exactly what to leave Zahan alone. Her only family left was her uncle and her cousin, people she ended up leaving in charge but she didn't exactly trust them. They kissed up to her father and they were kissing up to her. She wasn't sure if they could handle a crisis when it came up, even with her advisers with them. Her advisers were just that – advisers. They gave her their opinions and she decided what should happen from there, even completely disregarding what they said sometimes. Asteria had a feeling that she would be bouncing between the conquered countries and Zahan.

However, she was proud of what she saw. She knew Demitri was capable of getting business done. The soldiers at the palace were well trained and disciplined, bowing at her feet as she walked by them with purpose. She made her way to the throne room to find that Demitri kept the throne warm for her, not that she minded.

"I assume everything has gone well, Demitri?" she asked.

"Of course," he answered, sitting up and out of her way. However, she didn't feel like taking the throne immediately. She was tired and she actually just want to sleep for a while but she first had to make sure that everything was in order before she could actually settle down long enough to actually fall asleep. "The king is dead and I had the sad excuse we call troops trained. I haven't said anything to the Adossian people, so I doubt most of them know that their king is dead and that their prince ran away."

"I see. I will make sure to address to the people then," she said with a nod. "He had a daughter too, though, didn't he?"

"Ah, yes, the daughter," he mumbled. "She should be cleaning the kitchens right now. She begged for her life, made a really pathetic show of it. I stripped her of her title so she works as a servant here now. I didn't think you would care that she was alive, so long as she didn't try to anything against Zahan."

"I see." However, she didn't see Demitri as the kind of person to really spare anybody, unless he thought that making a spoiled rich girl work to the bone was amusing. Maybe he did think it was amusing. She liked the irony herself.

"All of the bedrooms should be clean, so rest anywhere you want."

Most people wouldn't speak to her like Demitri would, she realized but she wasn't upset about that. He didn't seem to bother with titles, like he didn't really care, but she cared more that he followed orders and got the job done, not the fact that he left her title out. Besides, she felt like she needed somebody like Demitri anyway. Weinstrad seemed rather intelligent but he was also seemed off-kilter. Russell seemed barely tamed. Erin was awkward at times. Azalea was somebody she didn't know too well personally but she had to be her own kind of crazy to indulge in Weinstrad's interests and Daphne was unnerving in her silence. Somewhere in there, she needed somebody with a good sense of order and Demitri fit that bill.

"I think I will turn in for the night," she said with a nod. She turned and walked away quickly, looking in each of the bedrooms for the one she wanted to sleep in. It wasn't that late at night but still, she was ready to call it a day. She stripped herself of her armour, sticking to her underarmour for night clothing. However, before she went to sleep, she stepped out onto the balcony.

She wasn't used to seeing so many, large trees with broad branches and wide leaves. She wasn't used to seeing so many flowers around, flowers that were there because they had the extra space for them. The only kind of trees she saw in Zahan were the ones with the needles for leaves and could grow by the mountains in soil that wasn't quite fertile enough for farming. Her people needed all the food they could get, so not even most of the nobility wasted land for plants that didn't contribute to their food supplies.

The palace in Adoss wasted a lot of land that could be used for farming for flowers that were only pretty for a week or two, she bet. Oh well. They could have their flowers if they had so much land. Surely, they wouldn't mind sharing some of their food.

* * *

 _Wow, this chapter is weird in that it jumps a lot. But I realized that at this point, if I don't throw some jumps like this in, then it will take forever for the Silcyian characters to be introduced. So it seems weird, especially Flint, but it's important to for later._

 _Any guesses for what Igneous saw?_


	17. Supports

"Fancy seeing you around here," Amaryllis muttered as she walked up to Zahreen. It was a little dark out, as the sun was just setting, and Zahreen was sitting in front of his tent, tending to his swords. She didn't have anything to do, so she decided to see just how he was faring. It wasn't as though she really cared about him much, it was just that they often crossed paths since they were in the similar fields and their short interactions weren't what she would call negative. They weren't productive but neither one of them left with hurt feelings. Contract workers, such as mercenaries and assassins, set around Fraedia or in her case, who frequent Fraedia, usually knew each other. Word in the mercenary world travelled far.

And they both had reputations. Zahreen was often known for his strength, being a one-man regiment who could make more gold for his talent if he wasn't such an asshole all the the time. She could tell by the tired looks on the faces of the people who hired him that nobody was spared from his sharp tongue. She was known for the gruesome scenes she left behind and she could make more gold if she didn't restrict herself to assholes who deserved the brutality. She had standards – no amount of gold in the world would make her kill somebody simply because somebody didn't like them. She needed a damn good reason.

"This would be the first time we've worked together, huh?" Zahreen mumbled with a curiosity that just didn't seem to suit him.

"We never had much reason. You only need one person to kill a shit stain," she answered with a shrug.

"Haha, true!" he said with a chuckle. "I never thought I'd see you stoop down to my level though. Don't you have better things to do with your time instead of chasing the oracle's ass?"

She huffed but she knew better than to take the bait. She had no idea what he looked like under his armour but she figured he had a shit-eating grin under that stupid helmet of his. He was strangely expressive for somebody who refused to show any skin. In the time she's known him, Amaryllis had never seen Zahreen do anything that resembled living, he was just a walking suit of armour as far as anybody could prove.

"Hey, this might prove to be a good gig," Amaryllis said, tucking some of her hair behind her ear with a smile. "I might get more gold than I usually would from an assassination, while being able to tease the men here."

Zahreen was chuckling again. When he calmed down, he 'looked' straight at her. "But that's not all, is it? Would you have taken this job had it not been for the oracle? If it was the same group without the oracle, would you still be here? "

She huffed again, fidgeting with the amulet that she kept around her neck. She didn't want to admit anything to Zahreen but he would be gathering something from her answer or her lack of one. He was her ally for now but as it was with their world, an ally could quickly be your next target, or you theirs. She had to protect herself, knowing that when she was done with the oracle, she would have to jump back into that world with her relationship with Zahreen being unknown.

"Perhaps, perhaps not. I'm not concerned with what didn't happen."

"Is that right? It couldn't be that you were interested in what the oracle might say about your future, huh?"

"If I was interested in my future, I would have made him read me already. I'm surprised you even believe in that sort of thing."

Zahreen laughed. "I'm willing to admit it when there's something I can't quite explain, believe it or not. A lot of the bitches in Fraedia are sketchy as heck but this little guy seems different."

Amaryllis still had her amulet between her fingers, turning it over and over again as she processed what Zahreen said. It just seemed strange for him to admit that he didn't know everything because he sure acted like he did. All the time.

"But knowing that, maybe you'll give me your actual answer. Of course, I understand why you may not want to tell me but while we exist in the same world, we don't have the same role. You wouldn't accept a job to kill me because I know you only go for the fat, greedy bastards that deserve it. At the same time, I doubt you would employ a threat to my employers since Fraedian nobles defend themselves. I go along with merchants, mostly."

Still, she didn't trust him. She didn't trust anybody. She didn't even know why Zahreen was going through the trouble of explaining what may have been obvious. He wasn't being a total jerk to her, not that he ever seemed to be a jerk to her. There was something about her that he seemed amused by without needing to criticize her like she saw him criticizing the people who hired him. He didn't pick on her in the same way – he picked a little, in a curious sort of fashion.

Amaryllis settled on not saying anything. She fidgeted with her amulet a bit more before turning her back on him abruptly and turning away. Zahreen didn't say anything as she left.

* * *

Gerben knew it was against his better judgment to go seek out Caalya. He knew she was afraid of him. She couldn't do more than glance at him, she never directed her journal in a way where he could read, and whenever he glanced in her direction, she booked it or hid behind somebody. He usually stayed in his human form, he couldn't talk in his other form anyway, but that didn't seem to help her much. He considered himself to be a pretty patient person, eleven-year-old Igneous used to pull on his fur something nasty whenever he took him for rides, but only he could be so patient and so understand for so long.

She was outside of her tent, writing inside that book of hers. She noticed him immediately, since he towered over her. Their inherent height differences and their tendency to build their bodies through the constant strain of hauling weight around for the sake of culture was the only thing that really separated an ursurine in their human form and a regular human. He was just bigger and wore stone around his legs and arms for fun. He had a feeling that she wasn't so scared of his human form but the potential for him switch forms. Much like how usurines didn't look different from humans in their human form, usurines didn't look much different from the wild bears who couldn't transform.

To Caalya's credit, while she was obviously frightened and cowering, she didn't run or retreat back into her tent. From his angle and being close to her for once, he could finally see the terrible scarring around his neck, at least whatever wasn't covered by her armour. He had a feeling that it probably went around the shoulder too. He sat down on the ground, not only in an effort to keep himself as small as possible but he found that the stone bracers and greaves made it awkward for him to be on his knees or squatting for too long. He was just a little too top-heavy for such positions.

"Caalya," he said with a deep breath, trying to manage the calmest tone he could muster with all of the sudden tension. "Is there anything I can do to make you feel more at ease? I know you're scared of bears and all but..." he let that hang for a moment, unsure of where to steer the rest of the sentence.

She scribbled something out quickly and then gestured to the line he was supposed to read. Gerben's reading ability was, admittedly, not very good. It took longer for the letters to form something that held meaning and he had to say out loud in a whisper under his breath for the words to present themselves. Learn to read better, that would be a good start when trying to do anything with Caayla. His first instinct was to squint, even though he could see her writing perfectly fine. Thankfully, her writing was very neat, so none of his difficulties came from that.

 _I'm sorry,_ was all she wrote.

"You know I don't want to hurt you, right?"

Caalya merely nodded. He was beginning to wonder if she would ever feel at ease around him then. Maybe she had to make the first move, maybe it was useless for him to approach her about it. He stayed seated for a little while longer before deciding to give her the space she probably wanted. He felt awkward just getting up and leaving but Gerben just didn't know what to say or do. He never had somebody be so completely terrified of him. Even little human children were fine with him, despite the fact that they came up to his knees sometimes.

Then again, they've probably never been hurt by a bear of any kind before.

He glanced back at Caayla. She looked remarkably sad. Maybe being so afraid of him bothered her too.

* * *

Igneous was a little surprised when Iniabi suddenly insisted on that lesson again. He shoved that fire tome into his hands and then all but dragged him back to his tent. He wasn't ill but he wasn't quite feeling the lesson either but Igneous supposed that he didn't get as much say in the matter. He asked Iniabi for help, it should be at his convenience.

"I just didn't want you to fall so behind that we're back at square one," Iniabi stated as soon as they entered in his tent. "It's handy that you knew the translation right away but you still need to work on your pronunciation."

"I see..." he mumbled, bringing the tome back up closer to his face. He could still read it as though it was written in the language that he was taught, it was an instant translation in his mind. He read it out loud again but he didn't get very far before Iniabi stopped him, pointing out a syllable that should have been hard instead of soft. That was the hardest part – remembering just how the words are pronounced. With the common language, he just knew. He heard the words so often that he just knew.

With the language presented in the tomes, he just didn't know. He didn't hear people chanting very often and when he could, it wasn't so close that he could understand it. He only realized he understood it when he began reading it so he didn't pay attention to what magic users were saying, just that the were saying it and he envied people who could do it. He wished he paid attention to it more.

"Do you have more than one of the same tome?" Igneous asked. "If you could read it out loud and I could follow it..."

Iniabi stopped for a moment and began digging through his tomes but unfortunately, none of them were the same. "I'll go see if Caalya has any. She should have something on her..." He left the tent quickly, before Igneous really had the time to process that he was gone. However, much like how he was quick to disappear, he was quick to reappear with a simple wind book. He gave that one to Igneous while he dug one out for himself.

"I usually don't use wind tomes, or the simple tomes for that matter," he stated, as he dug his out. "But I keep it just in case I need a simple spell." He didn't give Igneous room to respond. He merely opened the tome to the first page, making Igneous do the same thing, and just began to read it out loud. Igneous followed along, trying to keep a mental note of where the trouble syllables where and just how and when they were used. He wasn't sure if writing in a tome ruined its effectiveness but even if it didn't, it was still wasn't his tome. It was Caayla's.

Thankfully, Iniabi took it upon himself to repeat the same spell more than once, letting Igneous get a better sense of just how the language flowed. The more he paid attention, the more he liked the way it sounded. It was a beautiful language. Iniabi repeated the spell one last time and then set the book down.

"Did that help?"

"A lot, I think," he answered with a nod. "This... doesn't bother you, right?"

"What do you mean by 'this'?"

"Well, just that you're taking the time to help me and that you have to repeat yourself so often for me to get something."

Iniabi merely smiled. "Everybody needs a teacher, Igneous. It's natural to learn from somebody who knows more about something than you do. I had to be taught magic. As for the repetition, well that's just part of teaching. Not everybody understands everything on their first try. I'm honestly fine with it, it's not a waste of time for me. I'm happy to help people out." He had the gentlest of smiles. Igneous didn't know why he was so eager to help people out but Iniabi seemed genuine.

Igneous merely nodded, he didn't know how to respond in any other way. Even though the people at the temple said the same sorts of things when he was learning to read and write, there was still a part of him that struggled with that. He know that he was a burden to the adults in the village he and Saikur grew up in. They made it clear that they were frustrated with just how slow he was sometimes and the fact that he was only slow with some things didn't ease their frustrations.

Sometimes, their attitude made him wonder why they bothered to raise them at all. It wasn't like he was related to any of them.

"I don't know what's on your mind right now but... I'm sure everything will turn out. I have a feeling you'll be an amazing mage one day, and I'll be with you every step of the way until you become that mage."

"Thank you," Igneous said with a smile.

* * *

 _So this how I wanted support chapters to originally go - three at a time. I left labels out for now but if people need to know what support level the characters are at, then let me and I'll add them all in._

 _I also believe these were all suggested, so don't be afraid to suggest people you would like to see talk some more._

 _And for once, Zahreen isn't a complete jerk to somebody. Imagine that._


	18. Under the Surface

"According to my intelligence, the oracle's party should be arriving in this village," Weinstrad said simply. They were on top of a hill, with Daphne on her left and Weinstrad and his pegasus on her right. He had a hand up over his eyes, blocking the sun's glare. The village was sprawled out under the hill, too far away for them to be able to see much besides the buildings and the main roads. The people were merely dots that move around a little.

"What are we doing up here then?" Azalea asked. She wasn't used to the sort of politics that came with actually organizing an attack or even finding their target. She was letting Weinstrad do more and more, simply because he had the capacity and the confidence to do everything they needed. She only became a general somewhat recently, so leading troops on such a scale and making orders that were somewhat independent of her own orders weren't something she was exactly used to. At least Weinstrad was an interesting person, to say in the least. "And why did you send some of our own in there unarmed?"

"I can't fathom using our troops to fight right now, especially since I haven't heard back from Veiser yet about whether or not Russell actually did manage to take the royal family on. It's important to keep our presence here minimal until we have a better idea about what's going on," he said with a shrug. "I've paid bandits to cause some trouble for the oracle. Our troops are just there to watch and assess how his group is in battle, see if there should be anybody we should be worried about... and to see if they have anybody interesting." His lips curled into a wicked sneer.

That was the face he used whenever he had manaketes on the mind. She personally didn't care of his passion, Azalea was just happy he was interested in her work because of it. So long as he had something to play with, then she too had a project or something entertain herself with. He wanted long acting poisons, with symptoms would make anybody miserable. He also wanted poisons that could kill somebody quickly and quietly and while he didn't exactly state the reasons for such things, Daphne made an interesting observation. He reeked of blood, though she couldn't smell it herself. In other words, he didn't necessarily want messy kills. Or at least, not all the time. Whatever he was using the blood for, Azalea could understand the importance of getting as much as you can.

"So we're just up here to look pretty," Azalea mumbled.

"If you need ingredients, then feel free to go find some," Weinstrad mumbled. "I doubt I'd be much help."

"Actually, a lot of plants have both helpful and harmful parts to them. In some plants, it's only the berries or the bulbs of it that are poisonous so nobody thinks twice about them. Other plants are entirely poisonous. I'm sure I could do something with most plants."

"I see... it might be worth my time to brush up on plants," Weinstrad mumbled, keeping his eyes on the village underneath the hill. "But for now, I'll just watch here."

"Suit yourself," Azalea mumbled, walking away from him and down the side of the hill away from villages. Luckily for her, Fraedia was choke full of plants. She often took time to leave Zahan to visit Fraedia or Adoss herself, just to gather the necessary materials – it was hard to be interested in toxins and poisons while residing in Zahan. The only materials she could get in Zahan came from grinding rocks and minerals down to powder. At least Zahan had plenty of rocks. She now had an excuse to be in Fraedia and she might as well grab some materials while she was at it.

"I still don't like these people. Why do you continue to associate with them?" Daphne asked.

"The military is where people have an interest in my skills, both as an archer and as an apothecary. Even you have to appreciate the fact that the military appreciates you. I'm also ready for something to change... not just in Zahan but in Haelin overall," Azalea mumbled.

Daphne didn't look convinced. "You still have me. We don't have to be involved at all. But if you would rather be here, then I'll stay with you."

Azalea glanced down, pulling out a plant so that she had the full roots. However, she felt a little bad that Daphne just followed her around, joining in whatever she wanted to do. Surely, Daphne could do something else with her life. Azalea was grown up now, she while she welcomed Daphne's presence and often even sought it out, she could survive without her now if she really had to. She didn't have to depend on others. Maybe Daphne could change her name back and adopt another lost soul and guide them through life. She didn't look it but she definitely had a maternal instinct.

Daphne bent down and began picking plants with her.

* * *

It didn't take long for them to reach the next village and Igneous was thankful for that. For one, it was clear that the armoured guy, he later learned that his name was Zahreen, was starting to even wear on Igneous' patience. It wasn't that he was insulting everybody, he seemed to pick on Darren and his friends more than he picked on people who were new to him. However, it seemed like most people were just bothered by the fact that he had a sharp tongue in the first place. Igneous certainly didn't want to hear it.

The village gave them room to get away from each other for a little bit. Leigh, Garath and Elena were looking to add to their supplies, so they headed towards the middle where the small markets were. In the mean time, Igneous explored the village with a small group – Mira, Will, and Saikur. Will was sulking behind them, still barefoot and holding his bow. He looked defensive and he was clearly uncomfortable being there but Igneous figured that he was just keeping an eye out on Mira.

However, Igneous didn't feel comfortable in the village either. He had yet to see much of the corruption that Fraedia seemed so famous for but he supposed that the corruption was something seen closer to the capital. However, in the absence of the corruption, he could clearly see the poverty. It was clear that most of the homes were single roomed buildings in varying states of repair. Some lacked doors, making a thick curtain the only protection the citizens had against the elements. Other houses clearly had different types of wood added on as repairs or small extensions, completely homemade.

It was also clear to him that the children were the only ones were making the best of their situation. They were still smiling and running about the streets. Igneous was never quite that innocent as a child, mostly due to the teasing he got from everybody, even the adults. Even if it wasn't for the teasing, some of the visions he had as a child were rather dark in nature. He was more used to the dark matters now, having seen death and other tragic events over the course of ten years he lived at the temple but they weren't exactly easy as child.

The other thing that really bothered him was that the village was full of fortune tellers. He was instantly filled with anxiety, enough to make him pull up his hood and tuck his bangs behind his ears, the best he could at any rate. Igneous personally had no dealings with fortune tellerd, the normal everyday people who didn't have the gift he did, and that was because Adoss didn't have many fortune tellers. Most people went to the oracles because of the reputation they held, the reputation of being 'true' and 'right', enough so that some even believed in a god of some sort as the origin of his gift. Where else could such a gift suddenly appear from? Igneous wasn't so sure about a god but he knew that some of the people at the temple believed in a god or goddess some sort. A vague deity that nobody could agree on, only that it must exist, whatever it is.

The fortune tellers in Adoss didn't have such a reputation. The citizens of Adoss seemed to have more or less all decided that most fortune tellers were scammers. Suddenly, they were all people would want take money and tell lies in return. Between the competition with the oracle and their sour reputation, most of them left.

So while he had nothing to do with the migration of fortune tellers from Adoss to Fraedia, and the fortune tellers that lined the streets looking for patrons would not be the same ones would had to move, he felt like they would blame him. He was the continuation of the legacy that displaced their parents or grandparents. He felt more comfortable hiding in his hood, hoping that nobody would recognize him as the oracle. He did look remarkably similar to the other oracles, according to everybody who knew Vulcan and apparently, Vulcan heard a lot of about how he was similar to Mayon. His appearance alone was what attracted the attention of the knights who were passing through his village, singling him out as the oracle before he could even prove his talent.

"What are you doing?" Mira asked curiously, in a sing-song voice. She looked a little uncomfortable too but he knew it wouldn't be for the same reason as to why he didn't feel comfortable. He wasn't exactly sure of what happened to the siblings, he was sure that slavery was in their past since slavery was a concern brought up by Mira, but he was sure that was enough for them to be uncomfortable. As long as they were in Fraedia, there would be a chance that the group would come across more slave traders to remind of them their past.

"I'm hiding," he answered back quickly. This caused Mira to look around curiously while Saikur merely gave him a strange stare, like he was wondering if he should be worried about him.

"From what? The fortune tellers or the children?"

"The fortune tellers!" He felt a little silly about it when he said it out loud. "If one of them recognizes me, it's just going to be a lot of drama. They're mostly here because of the oracles."

Will mumbled something under his breath but Igneous missed it.

"Sounds like they would be jealous of you," Saikur mumbled quietly. "But aren't they all liars?"

"I don't know. I haven't met any of them!" Igneous shouted in a whisper. He was actually interested in other forms of divination. He heard of people using cards, bones, or reading the skies for signs from the other priests before but that was only because he asked what people used before the oracles. He had a passing interest in it, at least for the fact that it might help him understand himself a bit more. He just wasn't sure if anybody would tell him anything. The people at the temple seemed to discourage it, encouraging him to continue to do what he knew how to do, and he didn't feel like the fortune tellers would tell him anything. Why would they?

"They tell people what they want to hear," Will said quietly. "That's worth something in a hopeless place like this."

"Is it really hopeless?" Igneous might still be naive, he could believe that, but there had to be somebody who cared about Fraedia somewhere. There had to be somebody who cared enough to do something.

Will huffed. "The nobles will just keep perpetuating the system that works in their favour. They've been doing it for centuries and nobody's ever been loud enough to put a stop to it. I don't think there exists a time in Fraedia's history where slavery wasn't apart of it! There's never been a successful uprising, the people know this and the nobles uses it against us!"

"Will, that's enough!" Mira said, raising her voice slightly. Will didn't look too fazed but he didn't meet her eyes. Igneous could feel the tension building, so he eagerly looked about for a way out of it, something to distract the two of them or at least distract him.

And he quickly became thoroughly distracted. He noticed three men approach them with an air of malice, each of them holding a weapon in their hands and grinning. They weren't all big and burly, which surprised Igneous somehow. Only one of them matched what he always imagined a bandit to be, large – covered in scars, wiry hair, missing teeth, and holding a weapon that Igneous was probably about as long as he was tall. The other people would have passed for ordinary people had they not been so close to the the big ugly guy. One carried a bow and the other carried a sword.

They attacked first, the swordsman slashing his sword at Will, who nimbly dodged and in one quick motion, he pulled his bow out and fired an arrow. However, he only managed to hit the bandit's arm and it was clearly not enough to keep him back. The swordsman didn't event bother removing the arrow, he just followed with a succession of attacks and managed a shallow blow on Will's arm.

"You two need to run!" Saikur shouted, stepping in front of them with his axe. Mira and Igneous nodded and turned around, running in the opposite direction.

"Be careful this time!" Mira said as they ducked into an alley and into the first open door they saw. There wasn't any sign of those bandits, so they took a moment to catch their breath. They ended up in a tavern of sorts and it was busy at that, which was odd since it was so early in afternoon. He supposed that in Fraedia though, the bars would be busy all the time. The place was small but every unstable looking chair at each table was occupied.

"Hey, aren't you guys a little young to be in here?" one of the patrons mumbled as they brought a drink to their lips. Most of the patron were a little rough looking, not like that bandit rough, but it was clear that most of them saw battle or saw something terrible in their lives. Igneous didn't get a good vibe from them.

"They look about as young as that chick, maybe even younger," another said, jerking their thumb to a small table set for two. In seat, was a girl that did look about their age but Igneous guessed that she must have been older, since she had a mug of ale. She had dark skin, like she was heavily tanned, and she wearing mostly grey. She had most of her teal-coloured hair wrapped in a grey head shawl, she wore a grey, long sleeved shirt, and black pants. She had her feet up on the table, leaning her chair back as she drank her ale.

Her drinking partner did look older. He had the same, dark skin that his partner did, with unruly, dark brown hair. He had a headband but it didn't seem to keep the hair in check so Igneous guessed that he wore it because he liked it. He had a tattered, open vest that Igneous guessed was once white, and brown pants of similar condition, torn at the knees. He was chugging the ale back.

In the moment that both Igneous and Mira were distracted, the big bandit from before burst through the door. Igneous and Mira jumped but the man grabbed Igneous' arm. He refused to let go. Igneous found in a tough situation – he was himself trying to get away but since he didn't want to injure himself too badly in the process. He could only struggle so much before he could feel intense discomfort in his shoulder, just because the bandit would tug on his arm. However, the problem was solved when somebody threw a chair at the man and he was finally able to safely pull his arm away.

The guy Igneous was watching from before jumped and tackled the bandit to the ground, instantly going for a shot to the face. Mira gently pulled on Igneous' better arm.

"Igneous, we have to get away."

"Where are we going to go? They're blocking the door."

"You guys are probably safe now." It was the man's companion. "Cyrus doesn't know how to back down. Besides, you can pay anybody in here to kill the guy. Heck, they might even do it for free."

Igneous watched, stunned as the bandit punched Cyrus' nose and rolled him onto his stomach. It was in that moment that he realized that Cyrus was actually a fair bit smaller than the bandit. He wasn't as tall, his muscles lean, not bulky like his opponent's muscles were. In size alone, Cyrus was at a disadvantage but Igneous knew from people like Saikur that size wasn't the only factor in a battle. Saikur definitely didn't have the body of a fighter, he looked more like he should be carrying a sword, but he never seemed to have any problems with his axe. Cyrus looked to be the more skilled of the two, faster and capable of delivering more devastating punches that made both Mira and Igneous look away a couple of times before he was finally able to knock the man out. He stood up and that was when Igneous noticed the black eye and the blood nose.

"Well, good job, Cyrus." She had her arms crossed, clearly not impressed. Apparently, it was so common place in Fraedia that nobody batted an eye at a bar fight. The barkeep didn't even seem to be bugging the two of them for damages, like it happened all the time. He was a little disturbed just by the relaxed attitude that happened around a fight.

Mira looked a little less surprised than he did must have looked, but she didn't look like she enjoyed it either.

"You never seemed impressed, Alissa."

She huffed. "That's because you get into bar fights all the time! We can't ever have a nice, peaceful drink without you getting into some sort of trouble! We're lucky we're in Fraedia and fights in general are so common nobody gives a shit anymore. Come, we should get out of here."

Cyrus shrugged and followed her out. It took a moment for Igneous to follow after them. "Excuse me," he mumbled, making them both turn around. "Thanks for saving us."

Alissa was seizing him up. She stepped up close. "What the heck are you doing here anyway? You don't look like you somebody who would bother with Fraedia. No wonder that bandit followed you in. You're asking to be mugged at this rate."

Igneous quickly put his hood up. He didn't know when it fell down, perhaps during his run from the bandits.

"We're looking for mercenaries," Mira said, her voice more calm and collected than Igneous would have expected. She didn't look calm and collected, she looked a little rattled by everything, and yet she was still willing to help when he ended up being distracted and wordless. "So if you're interested, we have gold."

"Well, Fraedia's the best place for it," Cyrus mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"If you're offering, we're not going to say no. It's basically an escort job, isn't it? Pfft, that's easy. It's more relaxing than bandit hunting anyway." Igneous blinked. They didn't even get into the details of the job yet. It wasn't bandits that they were worried about, it was the looming threat of Zahan, with whatever they wanted or wherever they were. It worried Igneous more that he had no idea what they wanted or if they were even an immediate threat to him – he hated that he didn't have more control over what he saw, then his gift would be useful!

"Are you sure you're going to agree to it so quickly? It's not just the bandits but we also have Zahan on our trail. They killed the king of Adoss. That's why we're here," Igneous said.

Alissa raised an eyebrow. "If the king of any nation died, we probably would have heard of it. How come you know that? Were you there?"

"No but I just know," Igneous sighed. He didn't want to get into the oracle bit just yet. It was easier to just avoid it then say that he wasn't there but still saw it. "The Fraedian king is probably in danger too, not that you guys probably care about that. Zahan might even be better than who you have right now." He received a shrug from Cyrus and Alissa. "But the point is, they're still after us and they are a threat. If you're going to agree, you have to know that."

Alissa waved her hand dismissively, surprising both him and Mira. "I already said yes. Sure, it might not be as relaxing as I thought it might be but a job is a job. Besides, I'm not good at sitting down and thinking about things. It might be a bad idea but whatever." She shrugged at that. "I'll take my chances."

"The more you try to talk us out of it, the better it starts to look," Cyrus said with a grin, which settled into a smaller grin when he noticed that more bandits turned to the corner. A look of realization spread across his face for a moment before he bent down and picked up the axe from the unconscious bandit. He met their weapons with the stolen axe. "Hey Alissa, are you going to be helpful today or not?"

"I'll go get the axe you forgot," she said, running back into the bar.

"I'll take that," Cyrus mumbled as he buried the axe into the belly of a women. The other bandit, seemed to decide that it wasn't worth it and fled quickly. "You have a group, right? Mind if we go everybody else?"

"We're going to go check on my brother first," Mira said with a nod.

When Alissa returned with their belongings, Mira and Igneous led them back to the spot where they left Saikur and Will, who thankfully stayed in the same spot. Will was already inspecting his wound and he didn't seem to get anymore. Saikur stood guard. Igneous noticed that the biggest difference between the scene before he fled and the scene after was that the kids were gone and there were bodies on the ground. The fortune tellers didn't look amused but they seemed to be in the same spots they were in before.

Saikur saw them immediately, quickly sizing up Alissa and Cyrus. He ran up to them while Mira dashed to her brother's side.

"I'm starting to notice a pattern here," Saikur mumbled quickly. "Are they coming with us?"

"I'm impressed!" Cyrus said loudly. "You're quite small for a fighter! Good job, kiddo."

Saikur looked away. "I... thanks, I guess."

"We should get going. If they attacked us, the rest might have been attacked too," Will mumbled as Mira tightened a cloth around his arm. He began walked down the street, Mira following close behind him, but looking back at Igneous with a worried looked on her face. They followed them in silence, as they found the rest of the group. Apparently, not everybody was involved in a battle, apparently. Zahreen was with Darren, Ajax, and Fara, and they didn't seem to know anything beyond the fact that there was a commotion. Charles was minding his own business when they spotted him taking a stroll around in the town. Amaryllis was busy posing in front of two young men in what Kaetar assumed wasn't an entirely innocent interaction. Orla and Gerben were hanging out in a different tavern, and didn't see anything either, and Orla was talking about how she liked to put honey in her ale when they found them.

Igneous didn't know what ale tasted like, he wasn't allowed to have any sort of alcohol, but he wasn't sure if those two flavours mixed.

Everybody else though, was aware that there bandits and even fought them. Caalya was cleaning off her lance with a rag when they reached her and pegasus. Reina was with them, thankfully unharmed. While Igneous knew she was half-manakete, he was beginning to wonder if she would ever use her powers. Arder and Charlie bumped their fists together with Iniabi watching, still on edge. Everything was fine with Garath, Leigh, and Elena were fine as well and still ended up getting more supplies. Thankfully, injuries were all minor, nothing that Elena couldn't take care of. They were quick to leave the village behind.

"Wait, so why didn't the bandits attack everybody? They should have gone after Darren too! He's a prince!" Igneous asked as they were on the trail leading out of the village. It just didn't make sense to him. Surely, Darren, a prince on the run, was just as wanted as he was. The biggest difference would be that he was sure Zahan wanted him alive but they would probably want Darren dead.

"What?" Darren growled. "Did you see my death now too?"

"No! It's not like that!" Igneous growled back. He tried to ignored the feelings of anger that washed over him because really didn't have much reason to be angry. He was upset that Darren gave him dirty looks all day but that shouldn't be a big deal. He could see how angry Darren was, even if he tried to conceal it, so he knew Darren would want to pick a fight. "Even if I did, why should I tell you anyway? You wouldn't believe me!"

"It's all just self-fulfilling bullshit, that's why! My father truly believed he was going to die. He didn't even think about trying to get away, he didn't do anything to try to stop it. He just accepted it! He trusted you more than he trusted me! In fact, all of Adoss does that! Nobody ever has to think for themselves because they all know they just have to ask the fucking oracle. You could have said they were on fire and they would have believed you! All you oracles did was create dependency!"

"Language," Fara warned.

"He didn't think about getting away because he wouldn't have! He would have stayed for his people and for his children! If I didn't say anything, it probably would have still happened anyway because I'm just a messenger! In fact, you and your sister would probably be dead! Do you think I like telling people that they're going to die? You think I like being the odd oracle out and the Oracle of Death on top of it? I don't need you criticizing me just because you have daddy issues!"

Darren jumped off his horse and lunged at him and he was only stopped because Zahreen grabbed him and held him in a headlock before he could do anything. Darren didn't struggle against the man but he kept the sour look on his face. Igneous didn't go after him because he knew better but Iniabi grabbed his hands and pulled him back anyway. He had to admit, he was riled up but Iniabi and Arder holding him back upset him even more. He hated being touched. He tried in vain to thrash his way out of their grip, not so he could go pounce on Darren but just so that they wouldn't touch him.

"Hey! Let me go!"

"I don't know what problems you two have but we have bigger things to worry about," Arder mumbled, keeping his voice calm. Igneous would calm down too, if they let him go. He knew Arder was strong but he was stronger than he looked, as was Iniabi. He couldn't move his arms very much. "We were just attacked by bandits. Shouldn't we talk about that? "

"Because it's Fraedia!" Charlie called out, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "Bandits happen all the time! If there are people they didn't attack, they probably knew better. I would attack Zahreen."

"What a smart little boy you are!" he said with a snicker, laughing even harder when Charlie shot an obscene gesture his way.

"Regardless, we need you two to attempt to get along," Iniabi said.

"Or you just let them wrestle it out on their own," Elena mumbled with a shrug from the top of her horse. Her horse even seemed to whinny in agreement. "I mean, they both said things that sound like they were bottled up. It might do them well in the long run to yell at each for a bit longer and just let it out."

"That's not much fun for the rest of us... but I guess we could just let them scream at each other while we're not around. Let's go back the arena and we can let them scream somewhere else," Charles said thoughtfully, the bell around his neck jiggling slightly.

"No, we're not doing that," Leigh mumbled. "We'll let them talk it later but for now, we need to keep moving. Let them go." Iniabi and Arder were quick to let Igneous go and Zahreen was quick to let Darren go too, more or less tossing him towards his horse. Igneous couldn't believe that somebody like Darren ended up just letting Zahreen do whatever he wanted without any sort of consequence.

"We'll go to the back," Fara mumbled, waiting until Darren was up on his horse before moving her own. She was saying something to him quietly but Igneous couldn't hear any of it. Ajax followed behind them on his own horse but Zahreen apparently didn't feel the need to follow them. Igneous huffed, taking a moment to calm down before he continued on the trip. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

 _But when he opened his eyes, he was suddenly in a dark place. The sky and the ground were both pitch black and the only person he could see was Reina, looking at him with a concerned look on her face. She looked bright in the darkness, her silver hair and dress almost glowing due to the contrast with their environnent. From behind, a bloody figure rose from the ground, hoisting its weight up on one arm and raising its other arm towards her. Everything dripped with blood and the figure seemed to be made of it, rather than covered in it. She managed to turn around just in time to avoid it complete, stepping back to get away from it._

He blinked and suddenly, he was back with the group.

"Igneous?" Leigh asked.

"Huh?"

"Did you see something? The new ones almost went on without you," Leigh mumbled. "Did you tell them you are the oracle?

He shook his head but it wasn't like he was going to say anything now. He wasn't even going to say what he saw out loud, he would just find time to talk to Reina later and that wasn't hard to do since she stayed up so late anyway. If she was better with combat, she would be perfect for night watch.

"I'm ready to keep going," Igneous said.

"Then let's go."

* * *

After they settled down for the night and he had his lessons with Iniabi – nothing practical yet but he had a feeling they were getting there – he found himself in front of Reina's tent. He called from outside and she let him in. She wore a white night gown, that covered her arms and most of her legs in a soft, silky-looking material. Igneous wanted something in that material and it almost made him forget just what he was doing there. He had to focus!

He explained the vision to her, in as much detail he could muster. She frowned.

"I was in Zahan about... two years ago? Time kind of loses some meaning when you live for so long," she mumbled quietly. "It wasn't my first time there but until everything blows over, it will probably be my last for a while. There was a rumour that there is a man there who kidnaps manakete, tortures them, and bathes in their blood. I even heard he grinds up their bones to use in a potion."

Igneous could see how terrified she was. She was shaking and had her hands over her mouth, taking a break to collect herself before she could continue.

"I don't really look like a manakete thanks to my rounded ears but... I didn't want him or anybody associated with him to see through me. I didn't want to take that chance so I just ran back to Adoss and stayed there in Mira's troupe until you came along. It just reminds me of all the pain my mother went through before she met my father and I don't want to be close to that! If he was from Zahan, he could be after us!"

"Reina... remember, he didn't touch you in my vision." He? When did it turn into a he? "But you need to be careful. I'm still worried."

"I know. I feel like I'm the safest here even though my heart wants to run. I don't get along with everybody... and I'm not sure if anybody outside of you, Caalya, and Mira consider me as their friend but even then, I still feel like everybody would protect me. I mean, that's what they have been doing. Even so, I can't let my guard down." She looked calmer but she was still wringing her hands together by her chest.

"Are you going to be alright?" Igneous asked. He never saw her so freaked out before.

She hung her head. "I don't know what to do sometimes. It hurts to make friends... friends that I know I will outlive. The longer I stay here, the more friends I will make but I still like it a lot here. It's more fun than being on my own and I'm sure my parents would want me to have friends. I want to run and yet I know I'm safe here. If I run now, he could get me. If he could take down so many manakete, then I don't have a chance on my own."

"I think staying here is the right call," Igneous said seriously. "Enjoy the happy times instead of being scared of being hurt at all. Maybe we'll also find another manakete for you to be friends with."

"You're right," she said softly, a small smile appearing on her face. "It will be hard but I'll stay. It's what is best right now. For now though, I think you need to get some sleep. I know you enjoy your sleep."

"Yeah, I'll go to sleep," Igneous mumbled, backing out of her tent. "Goodnight!"

"Goodnight," she said quietly.

Igneous left. He was beginning to think that maybe they should start doubling up because he was surprised they still even had enough tents for everybody. Alissa wasn't even in a tent, she was relaxing up in a tree. He shook his head and headed inside his own tent.

* * *

 _To clear things up, I want the support conversations to kind of feel like they have a place in the story, so the ones that get their own separate chapters will be between actual chapters of the stories. I don't want to do two supports in a row but it might happen on day, who knows?_

 _Also, somebody wanted more from Zahan. It isn't much but enjoy! I'll be jumping around a lot more in the next chapter too for some political stuff. I don't have a politics degree. Why do I do this to myself? .  
_


	19. On the Inside

When Brontes woke up in the morning, he could feel that something wasn't exactly right. He couldn't place it but it was a feeling that ran with him as he put his silver hair up into a short ponytail and put on his black and gold armour before leaving the room for the small mess hall. Everything about the headquarters was on the small side, making it easy to defend but the biggest reason for its small size was because they had to be frugal. They were a small group, at least the ones who lived in the headquarters comprised a small group, but not a lot of people in Fraedia had gold and that included them. Not a lot of gold trickled down to commoners, especially for people like them – they were an independent militia, one that swore to defend the people so the nobles weren't fond of them anywya. He had a private bedroom that people insisted on but it was only big enough for a cot, a desk, and a single chair. Other than that, they had two rooms full of bunk beds for everybody else to split up.

The mess hall was already full of people. Brontes realized he slept in and he was left to wonder why nobody bothered to wake him up. It wasn't as though he was ill or was in desperately need of sleep.

"Hey, Brontes!" Iza called out with a wave. Iza was one of the best at taking out the bandits in and around Valburn and it showed. Her skin was covered in scars, scars that she wore proudly, and she had toned arms and legs, which she gained thanks to her use of a poleaxe. She had her purple hair tied up into a loose bun, and her armour consisted mostly of leather. "Come sit with us!"

He nodded, collecting his breakfast for the day and sitting down next to her. He knew the faces of everybody who joined him in the fight against the corruption in Fraedia. At Iza's table, there were three other people. There was Brion, a swordsman who was recently freed from an underground gladiatorial ring, so while he wasn't part of the militia for long, he already showed a lot of promise. Beside him was a girl named Laurel, who liked to shoot arrows soldiers into the right eye as a calling card, although why she liked to do that was beyond Brontes. Finally, there was Yuren, somebody who originally worked for a noblewoman but he turned tides and now served as the militia's shield.

It took a long time for Brontes to be able to trust him.

There was another table of people. Marin was a shy mage who didn't socialize a lot but he could whip up a tornado and deal some serious damage. Hadrien was a paladin but he was also one of the oldest in the group, and Brontes often found himself seeking advice from him. They had an ursurine on the team named Tora, and while he was relatively young for an usurine, he was still powerful. Finally, their resident healer and caretaker was a women with greying hair that was tied into a bun named Ana. She was constantly on them about their health but Brontes knew that she cared and just wanted to see something change in Fraedia in her lifetime. She didn't leave their headquarters.

However, the only person missing was Kalen, a young man who made it his life's goal to dig up any sort of dirt that they could use against their enemies. Brontes didn't know much about Kalen himself – he kept himself covered in green and brown clothes and a large cloak. Brontes never saw Kalen without them, and it covered his body so well that Brontes only knew he was male simply because Kalen told him so. Nobody could really prove it one way or another anyway, so they just took his word for it. It wasn't surprising that he was gone but Brontes was concerned that he might have gotten in over his head every time he left.

But this group only made up the core of his independent militia. There were several others, strewn all about Valburn. They lived on their own, or with their families, and they fought when needed. If they saw injustice, it was their job to deal to jump in. It was important to him that citizens learned how to defend themselves and for citizens to stand up for each other. That was the kind of militia he wanted. If he needed them, Kalen could gather them within hours, pretty quickly all things considered.

But just as Brontes was about to ask about the man, Kalen all but crashed through the door. "You guys! You are not going to believe this but it looks like there are bandits inside the palace gates! I only saw them go in and out but all of the soldiers are gone and the place is completely trashed! They did a pretty good job. I wish it was us."

Brontes perked up immediately, though he was careful about letting it show. "You are sure about this?" he asked. Kalen wasn't ever wrong but he didn't want to jump to conclusions prematurely. If there were bandits inside of the palace, then that held serious implications. They had to be sure.

"Of course I am! Well, I'm not sure if those people were bandits, or if they were even Fraedian, but the soldiers are gone! We've never had a chance like this before!"

"That's true but we can't afford to rush into something like this. The palace is well guarded, so if they were strong enough to took down all of the soldiers, then we too have to be extra careful. Fraedia has nobody else. If we're not here to defend the people, then nobody else will," Brontes said simply as he shoved some food into his mouth. "For now, we need to collect more information."

"Awh, you don't trust me?" Kalen asked.

"It's not that I don't trust you. It's just that we can't afford to be wrong," Brontes answered again. Although, it was all too tempting to just march in there and destroy the crown, breaking centuries of oppression and corruption in one swell swoop. He wanted to clean the floor with somebody for everything the people went through. It was a shame that they didn't take down the royal family themselves but even with the royal family gone, the fighting wasn't done yet. The royal families in Fraeida just weren't stable – it wasn't the first time somebody went in and killed them all, it was just the first time it wasn't a noble who did it.

"Hypothetically, let's say we do end up getting the crown," Hadrien said from across the room. "What do you plan on doing instead?"

"We need a system that allows the citizens to have a voice," he answered. He actually gave it plenty of thought before, when he was in bed at night and he couldn't sleep. "But of course, we still need a select group of people that the people can trust to run things – the average citizen wouldn't know how to make a country functional. It's has to be a balance of the people being able to choose representatives to wield the power the citizens would lend them but at the same time, we can't have those people run off with that sort of power or else we'll be back to this. We would have to cycle people through, make them stay long enough to make a difference but kick them out before they could cause irreversible damage."

"Relax, relax, don't get do stressed about something that won't happen for a while," Ana mumbled, getting up from her seat and shuffling to the oven. Hadrien merely offered a nod in his direction before going back to his meal. "Get to the castle first. Then we'll talk. In the mean time, would any of you like some tea?"

"You would be on those people in charge, right?" Brion asked. "Because honestly, you're the only person I can see doing a good job like that. If you can run this group, then you can help run a country too."

"Of course I'd be part of it. I'm going to do whatever is possible to help Fraedia. Right now, my job is running a private militia but I have bigger goals." Brontes was quickly realizing that he wasn't eating very much. He spent more time talking, thinking, and pushing his food rather than just eating it. He wasn't that hungry, he supposed. Waking up with a sense of something being off and then hearing Kalen's news just made his appetite disappear. He wanted to get up and do something, maybe accompany Kalen to the castle in order to see for himself what condition it was in. Still, he forced food into his mouth. Nobody wasted food in Fraedia.

Maybe, if he did go out, he should bring Iza and Hadrien too. No, maybe he should just go alone – a group might be a bad idea. After all, he just needed information and he didn't intend getting into a fight, at least not at the castle. He needed to know if there was a brand new opportunity for him. Brontes got up once he cleared his plate and downed his cup of water, alarming everybody in the room.

Ana raised an eyebrow. "Brontes?"

"I'm getting my sword and shield. I'm going out alone for a while."

"Alone...?"

"I need to clear my head. I'll be back soon enough."

* * *

Brontes hated how Valburn was set up. The palace was almost in the middle of the city, serving as a constant reminder of how sad their lives were when constantly had something to compare their lives to. You could stand on on the purple dragon and see right into the gates and up the main doors to the palace. It was fenced off, with pretty gardens and slaves constantly buzzing around to tend to them. It was the type of scenery that was a world away from the type of scenery in the rest of Valburn, where houses were in various states of disrepair and it was mostly weeds that grew in the spaces between roads. People tried to plant small vegetable gardens but in Valbun, they usually ended up getting ruined one way or another.

If anything happened around the palace, it was hard for the citizens to miss it, which made the entire thing more intriguing if he was only hearing about it because of Kalen. Likewise, it was hard for the royal family and all of their soldiers to miss anything that happened around the palace. The roads, made of stone, were often covered in the blood of somebody, whether it be from bandits, mercenaries, or innocent people. The soldiers posted outside of the fenced palace often watched the fights occurring just outside of the palace with a snicker, poking each other in the side and pointing. Unless somebody brought the fight to the palace gates, they did nothing.

Brontes didn't attack them but he satisfied himself with the knowledge that someday, he'd wipe their smirks off their faces. With his sword. He just wanted to mass a bigger army, one truly worthy of taking them on, one made of the rage of the people. If he was the only one fighting, it would have been a different story – he would have gone to kill as many of them as he could, even if it was a lost cause. He was happy to delay the fight because it wasn't his fight alone. Besides, as he said earlier, he could sabotage the efforts he already made. It could easily go awry without him.

He scowled when he realized that their fight had been taken. The gates were smashed, blood still smeared down the outside of the fence, on the gates, and on the palace walls. He couldn't see the bandits that Kalen spoke of but he did see somebody just standing outside of the castle from his position on the purple dragon mosaic on the floor. The dragon itself had seen countless deaths and was host to many slave auctions. The figure wore black robes, with an icy blue trim, and silver mask that covered their face, certainly not the colours of any sort of nobility he knew of. They were writing something down.

They noticed him though, setting down whatever they were writing to the side before getting up. They strode to the gate with a staff at their side, not going beyond the gates but they didn't have to go beyond to send a shiver down Brontes' spine, a reaction to powerful magic, he figured. They had to be a particularly powerful mage to elicit such a reaction.

"Can I help you?" a male's voice asked. Somehow, they made that sound particularly condescending.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Veiser," he answered simply. "I'm from Zahan, if that's your next question. I take it you are just a mercenary, so I can't disclose much information to you. "

"Zahan, huh?" Brontes mumbled, mostly to himself. "I don't need to know much. I just need to know if you have any plans on actually doing something good for this place if you're going to occupy it."

"I see," Veiser answered. "Fraedia has a rocky history full of corruption and most of the population sits in poverty, as far as I can recall. We do have plans, plans that involve more than just Fraedia I figure, but I'm just a lowly mage. I don't have much authority over our plans but I believe that once we're done with this place, then whoever is left can fight over it. I personally have no investment in what happens here. We're here to do a job and once its done, we're gone, so we're not going to fix this country's problems for you."

Brontes could tell by Veiser's tone that he was no longer welcomed. He made it sound downright threatening. He knew better than to provoke mages. While they were frail in appearance, Marin looked like he would blow away in the breeze sometimes, but they could tear people apart with their magic. This guy may not even need a tome if his staff was of any indication, a small peek into the power that Brontes' instincts warned him against. His mind felt differently though, his interest piqued.

"What of the royal family then?"

"You look intelligent. Take a guess."

Veiser took one more glance at him before backing up, his staff in hand and pointed at the gate. He whispered something under his breath and there was a shine of light, one that forced Brontes to look away for a second. When his eyes settled on the gate, he could see a translucent barrier surrounding it, and while it hardly looked solid, more like just wisps of light, he could actually press his hand against it.

"Meanwhile, that should keep anybody I don't like out of the palace," he whispered. "Have a good day!" He waved his staff like a twisted greeting before bounding away, returning to his previous activity.

Brontes growled but he knew his sword was nothing against a magical barrier like that. He wasn't even sure if Marin could do anything against it. He hoped that Veiser was just misguided more than anything else, maybe he could help them out if he didn't actually care for Fraedia all that much. Perhaps he could accomplish his goals for Zahan and somehow leave them with some sort advantage for him when they left. The rational part of his mind told him to forget about it.

Veiser wasn't interested in talk anymore, that he much he knew, so he walked away too, back to the headquarters. He needed to think more, so he was taking the long way back. Zahan was out of reach at the moment, so they were really at a standstill. The best they could do was gather more people, maybe even find somebody who could get rid of the barrier, and make sure that the people who needed their help had it. It sucked to be unable to move forward. It took two years to build up the forces he had and he no idea how long it would take for Zahan to leave.

Every time he walked outside, he was reminded of the sorry state that Fraedia was in and why he fought so hard. Slums were expected in a big city like Valburn but the entire place felt like a slum. Everybody, including people in his militia, walked around with a weapon of some sort, the poor carrying wooden clubs of some sort, just because they needed that to feel safe, even with his militia present. They just needed to feel like they had some sort of control over their lives for once. That was just the problem that the free people encountered too.

The slaves were a different story. They weren't even treated like people, more like objects or animals. The king and the nobles freely and publicly endorsed the use of slaves, often setting up auctions of their own in public spaces or celebrating a good trade over wine. That was worse than hogging the soldiers. At least strong people could fill in for the soldiers, his militia was proof of that, but it was hard to stop the slave trade without being in charge of the country. To get rid of the slave traders wouldn't exactly be helpful – it would leave hundreds without a place to go, vulnerable to people who would to take the opportunity to become new slave traders. Slavery had to be outlawed before they could help everybody escape it.

If Zahan wasn't going to help the people, then he wasn't going to wait around until they were done using Fraedia. He just needed to find a way to bolster his numbers even further, gather an army to rival even that of Zahan's.

He could do it.

* * *

She had secret hiding places throughout the palace – it was designed that way, for her to still be involved and in the know but out of sight and out of mind. She wanted to know what was going on at all times, so she often sat in during the grand meeting that the councillors had with the two kings. Or rather, as it was, a king and a queen, the wife of the king who took ill but hopefully, he would get better soon. Of course, only the royal families knew she was still around and that she even still existed, and they also knew that she would be listening, from her hiding place near the back of the room. Thankfully, she had sensitive hearing.

The room was filled with people. At the front, sat King Anen, who was by all means still very young – only eighteen, she believed. His skin was chocolate coloured, much like nearly everybody else in the room, including hers. His dark hair was tied back, with braids running through his ponytail. He dressed rather plainly, with a cropped, silk top and baggy, flowing pants but he made up for it in the amount of jewels he wore and the permanent pattern of intricate swirls going half way down his arms in black ink.

Beside him was Queen Nehi. Her dark hair rolled to the middle of her back, with a couple of braids running through it as well, only the ends were capped with golden beads. She wore a shoulder-less dress that was the colour of sand and aside from details sewn into the trims, it was relatively plain for Nehi. She also wore little jewellery, wearing only bracelets and earrings. Nehi was with child though, so she scaled back in terms of her fashion, as she used to wear a lot more before. She was quite a bit older than Anen, her husband being the older of the two kings.

The two councils sat on opposite sides of the room in rows of chairs that faced each other, separated by a large gap and a gold rail. The councils were mostly civil, they rarely broke out in ridiculous fights but there was still a clear preference in how the nobility would rather do things versus how the commoners would like things done. The council of the common people sat on the right side, on the side of Nehi.

"If the spies' reports are correct, then Zahan has broken the twenty year promise set up by our previous kings by taking a military force to The Barren. Our reports state that Zahan has already infiltrated Adoss and killed King Jarid. They may also be in Fraedia was we speak. We are here to come up with possible actions to take before the councils deliberate," Anen began.

Somebody on Anen's raised her hand and the two royals nodded in her direction, so she stood up. "Are we to assume that Zahan poses any threat to us? They may not be able to get a whole army through the desert." With that, she sat down.

"They have wyverns. Even if they can't get their land army through the desert, their wyverns are impressive," Nehi answered. "We have a fair amount of highly skilled archers and the few mages we do have are at the top of their class but it's best to assume that they will try to invade us too."

"There is no reason to believe that they wouldn't," Anen mumbled. While Nehi looked nervous, Anen looked bored. He was young but this was far from his first meeting. "Our reports may even be behind. If they are indeed in Fraedia already, then Vedia is likely their next target. Next?"

There was a raised hand on Nehi's side. Approved, he stood up. "I say we ally with Vedia. We do not have a lot of mounts in Silcyia but it is a different case in Vedia. My father spent quite some time in Vedia so I know this to be true. I believe we should go after them before they come after us. With our ground units and their air units, we cannot lose." There was a murmur as he sat down.

The two royals let this go on for a while, with Nehi looking to Anen for guidance. He whispered something into her ear before raising his hand, calling for silence.

"Next, please."

The next person with approval stood up. "I say we hold our ground for the time being and wait for more information. Adoss was a surprise attack. Vedia and Fraedia may hold them up a while so we should at least try to find why they would break the twenty year promise. The more we know, the better of a decision we can make. We shouldn't be brash. In the mean time, perhaps we should make sure that our army is prepared to move and that they are pushed even further."

Again, more murmuring until Anen raised his hand again. A commoner stood up when silence came, without the approval of the royals. What a bold character, she thought. He looked young too, young yet fierce. He reminded her of somebody she knew once, somebody from long ago but unlike that person she knew, Anen had better morals. He actually cared for his people. Neither Nehi or Anen said anything, so he took the chance he had to speak.

"Why can't we do both? Nearly everybody in the country knows how to wield a weapon. Have some people fighting against Zahan with Vedia and everybody else can wait here in case Zahan advances here. Their forces should be weaker by the time they get here." He sat down quickly.

"Does anybody else have anything to say? No? Then the councils are dismissed to deliberate. We should meet again in three days time." Anen waved his hand. Everybody filed out of the room quickly, leaving the two royals alone in the room before long. When she was sure that everybody was gone, she stood up and approached them, adjusting her cloak as she got up. Anen let out a heavy sigh. "These meetings are a drag. It takes so long for any sort of decision to be made. You think the two of us could just make a decision and move on."

"It's to balance power, you know this," she mumbled in response.

"I am a little curious though," Nehi muttered, putting a hand to her swollen belly. She didn't know how far along Nehi was but she was far along enough that it was obvious, there was no doubt about it. Neither one of the royal families were particularly starved for heirs but she got excited about nonetheless. The spares were always turned into powerful warriors. "Why are the two councils really necessary? Is everybody afraid that we will become like Fraedia? Our people are too strong for something like that to happen, aren't they? They wouldn't stand for corruption or slavery and they would certainly fight back if something like that was to happen."

"One person with too much power is never a good thing. That's why we bother with all of these counter balances, even though it takes so long for everybody to come to a final decision. Besides, in a state of emergency, the two royals are allowed to make a decision on their own, without the need of the two councils."

"That might be soon," Anen muttered. "You know, when Zahan actually comes knocking on our door."

"Or not," she answered simply. "Adoss and Fraedia have always been pushovers when it came to their armies but Zahan might find their match in Vedia. They would have to completely change the way they fight in order to accommodate a lack of land. They may have a powerful wyvern riders on their side but they can't depend their wyverns along to go against their navy and their pegasi. There is also the matter of Vedia's Serpent."

"Is she like you?" Anen asked. "You said you were there when The Barren first became toxic."

"That is true," she admitted. She was one of the few who truly knew what happened but she agreed, a long time ago, that she wouldn't speak the full truth of it. She could tell the royal family that she was there but even then, she was probably skirting along some unspoken rule. "Ianthe is indeed a manakete but she was born here, unlike me. Haelin's her home so she'll defend it tooth and nail. She also feels that she's personally responsible for the safety of Vedia."

"I'd like know one more thing," Anen mumbled. "Isn't there a hint you can give us regarding why Zahan would go from wanting the fertile land of The Barren to wanting war? Surely, they would just been satisfied with settling their people there and then fighting off anybody who disagreed. Their conquering of Adoss was unnecessary and they're still going. Can't you tell us why? Isn't that important?"

"Do you know that what the first oracle said about The Barren?" she mumbled. "I would take her words more literally if I was you. In the mean time, I'd like some rest. I'll be back here, in three days time. Good night, Nehi and Anen."

With that, she bowed her head and walked away. She couldn't let herself talk anymore. It might have been a promise that no longer applied anymore, considering the fact that most of the people who made it are dead but it was still important to her. After all, she was the only who still believed in it and held on to it, not the only one who knew about it. She knew that Ianthe's father, Iphis, filled in the blanks in her knowledge, and she figured that Ianthe herself would have a loose tongue if she found somebody interesting. Ianthe was could be rather chatty.

Maybe it was stupid to keep her promise but it was all she knew, keeping that promise for centuries. She was going to hold on it, at least for a bit longer.

* * *

 _I take a long time and this chapter is short! Basically, I had three midterms, all back-to-back, so I had a hard time justifying fanfic writing when I had so much to study. There was a death in the family, so I didn't exactly feel like editing or writing for a bit.  
_

 _I tried adding more to the end but nothing seems to fit, so I figured you guys could handle having fewer words than usual._


	20. Supports: Part II

Gerben almost forgot what it was like to have another ursurine around. He never bragged about the weight of his bracers and grieves to humans before because it just wasn't the same. They marvelled at the fact that he wore stones but they also looked worried, citing concerns about his joints, the condition of the skin underneath, and just whether or not it hurt. He never thought about how the weight was affecting his body, it was just what all the ursurines did. The stone was smooth underneath and there were bandages separating the stone from most of his skin but he hadn't taken his bracers off in years. It wouldn't be too pretty if he took them off now, with how much sweat must have gotten underneath them over the years.

He didn't miss it until he met Orla. He didn't miss being competitive until he began sparring with Orla.

She was shorter and more agile, her build leaner than his. Not to mention, it looked like her time in Fraedia did her good – she was certainly skilled. Gerben on the other hand, was rusty. He didn't have to fight for his life in Adoss like she did on a regular basis in Fraedia. She was able to predict all of his moves, so the fact that he was bigger and could hit harder meant nothing if he couldn't actually hit her.

"You're kinda boring," Orla said with a smirk, tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear just after sending Gerben to the ground with a hard kick to his stomach. "My cub can beat yours and I can beat you."

"Fat chance," Gerben mumbled, bouncing back to his feet.

"Maybe I hit your head too hard! I've been kicking your ass all day!" she shouted, aiming a punch at his gut. This time, Gerben ducked and tackled her to the ground bu his nose hit the weights she kept in her vests, causing blood to dribble out onto his lips. "Heh, even when you get me you still lose."

"Oh, shut up," he mumbled, getting up to his knees to wipe his face with the back of his hand but he was sure that all he managed to do was smear the blood all over his face. "What the heck do you keep in that stupid vest of yours?"

"Oh, just some extra metal that blacksmiths have lying around," she said, patting her vest down in pride. "I just sow them inside and get on my way. They don't weigh much individually but together, they sure do add up. Will has a hard time even picking it up. Your bracers and grieves are a bit thicker though, so it's hard to say which one of us is carrying more."

He scowled as the blood continued to run. His face had to be a mess. Orla's smile fell a bit.

"You must have really hit my vest pretty hard. Is your face going to be alright like that?" She sounded like a concerned friend, all traces of competition temporarily gone.

"It'll stop soon," Gerben mumbled, holding his nose to stop the bleeding. "I'll just have Iggy help me clean my face after, it should be fine."

"If you say so. This was supposed to be a friendly spar, so I didn't expect any blood. Sorry about that! I'll pay for the drinks next time around!"

"You're a bad influence," Gerben mumbled. "But it's not your fault I whacked my face on your vest. If anything, today made me realize that I'm a bit... rusty."

"A bit?" she asked, breaking out in laughter. She feel to the ground, holding her ribs. "You're just a big softy! A child's play thing!" she added when she finally calmed down enough. Gerben felt his cheeks burn in embarrassment. Had he really been so out of reach with other ursurine? He spent more time entertaining Iggy than he did training.

No, it wasn't a bad thing. He didn't regret making Iggy smile.

"I was playing with a child, so yeah, a child's play thing," he pointed out. "I was just curious about the oracle, so that's why I went in the first place. He wouldn't let me leave though, so I spent the last five years keeping him happy."

Orla smiled a little, pushing herself pack up to her feet. "I see. I would have liked that for my cub. He doesn't smile much. Could you believe that this has been the happiest he has been in a while now that he knows where his sister is? Still, you gotta improve if you want to protect your cub. We're in Fraedia now, so you gotta keep up. How about we transform and you wash your face later?"

"You're on!"

* * *

Saikur decided to take Elena up on her offer to just talk. Despite his talk with Igneous, his feelings about himself were still sitting at an all time low, which was actually an impressive feat since he was his mother's son. It was almost a rite of passage to sleep his mother, at least that's what the older guys in the village said. He still felt terrible about his own weaknesses, the ones that Zahreen made so apparent. It still hurt when he spoke too much, and it hurt even more to know that Igneous was worried about him. The poor thing was already so stressed out with Zahan and being the oracle, he didn't have to worry about Saikur too. Making sure Igneous was happy was part of his job as a guardian and it was just what friends did.

"I just don't know what to do. I feel bad because Zahreen makes me feel like shit-"

"He seems to make everybody feel bad about themselves. He knows how to get under people's skin. Just try not to let him bother you," she said, waving her hand. "Or you can listen to him. He seems to get a kick out of it but his teasing is also sound advice."

"Anyway... I feel like shit because I feel like I'm too weak to protect Igneous when it really counts. He would have to depend on somebody who doesn't care about him like I do. I should be the one to defend him but I can't... and then he worries about me. What am I supposed to do?"

"You've really fallen hard for him," she mumbled, looking sympathetic. "And really, there's no easy answer. You know becoming stronger probably isn't going to help you, right? You will probably always feel like you can't protect him, no matter how strong you become. I don't think you even trust yourself to protect him and I don't think you ever will."

Well, that was an unwelcome revelation. He didn't want to think that deeply about anything – he was only just coming around to understanding the fact that his feelings for Igneous were probably beyond platonic and that his admiration was probably more like a strange obsession. He was already emotionally exhausted as of late, so perhaps he shouldn't have gone to see Elena after all. Elena wasn't the type to just say what people wanted to hear, she just said what she thought, whatever came to mind. He frowned.

"Then... what do I do?" he asked.

Elena frowned. "I don't know what to tell you. You have to find a way to build your self-esteem. You can't build your entire identity around how useful you are to Igneous. Can you describe good things about yourself without them being related to Igneous? I know that it sounds bad but..."

"No, I know. Igneous was my everything in my childhood and I know I was only his only friend too. Back then, at least. He seems to have lots of friends now but I never really tried to make other friends," he mumbled slowly. He was on nice terms with his brother's children but even when he wasn't with Igneous for the few years after Igneous left the village, Saikur was working to be with him again. He trained so he could by his side. Elena lit up.

"Well, there you go! Go make some more friends! Maybe you could go train with Garath and Cyrus or something. They both use axes, right? Although, I feel like it's easier to count the number of people who are hard be friends with, so there are a lot of potential friends. You just have to get yourself out there. Just start talking to people more," Elena said, clapping her hands together.

Saikur wasn't really sure if he was interested in making more friends. Elena gave him a look though.

"Promise me you'll try, okay? You'll make Igneous worry less if he sees you can be friends with other people. Or made you can try to grab his attention by making him jealous," she added with a smirk.

Saikur felt his cheeks burn. "I'll try making friends. I'll go train with Garath and Cyrus, just like you suggested."

"Don't let me keep you then! Off with you then! Go make some friends!" she said, practically pushing Saikur out her tent. He righted himself, took a deep breath, then left.

* * *

Arder was just about to take a nap for the night, sneak in some sleep before he was expected to take over for Iniabi for the nightly patrols. He set his sword down next to his bedroll and he was just about to crawl into his bedroll when he heard somebody call to him from outside of his tent. He frowned for a moment. It wasn't like he didn't want to help whoever was on the other side of his tent flap but he needed at least a little bit of sleep before his shift to be alert and he was already kind of tired as it was.

He poked his head out. It was Will, or at least that was what he thought the boy's name was. Arder only ever saw him when he was training with Mira and he only ever seemed to speak to the female ursurine and to Mira, so he only heard his name in passing. Arder had the feeling that Will didn't like him too much, that or he was overly defensive of Mira. Maybe even a combination of both, he wouldn't be surprised about that at all. Either way, Will always looked far too serious for somebody as young as Will was and that was coming from somebody who was barely an adult himself.

"Can I help you?" Arder asked.

"Why are you training Mira?" he asked simply.

"Because she asked me to," Arder mumbled. "She wanted to be able to defend herself." He hoped that his answer would satisfy Will and for a moment, he looked to be contemplating Arder's answer. Arder almost retreated back into his tent completely before Will seemed to decide that it wasn't enough.

"She shouldn't be on the battlefield at all," he growled. "She's had a hard life already." Will looked away, a scowl on his face. Arder frowned for a moment, then crawled out of his tent, sensing the conversation wasn't going to be over as soon as he wanted it to.

"That's probably part of the reason why she wants to train then. I don't know what happened to you guys but if you have a problem with her trying to protect herself, then maybe you should go talk to her about it. I already said I would help her train and I'm not going to go back on my word, especially if it's not her decision," Arder said, folding his arms in front his chest. "You could tell us you know."

"Tell you what?"

"What happened to you and Mira. You guys were separated for some time, weren't you? We could help you two better if we knew what we were dealing with. It might make you feel better too."

"We don't need your help!" Will said with a hiss, prompting him suddenly flee from his tent in a huff. Arder shrugged and retreated back into his tent. Maybe if Will was upset with him, then he won't interfere with Mira's training. It could only help Igneous and Darren if everybody in their group could do something in a punch, just in case something slipped past them. He just couldn't understand why Will would be so against his sister being able to defend herself. It wasn't like she was going to be picking fights.

Perhaps he should ask Orla or Mira, he thought to himself as he crawled back into his bedroll.

* * *

 _Hopefully I can get the new chapter out before the new year but no guarantees. I didn't end up writing a lot, since I was busy with school and one of my cats died a month after my grandpa did._

 _As, always, feel free to suggest more supports that you want to see!_


	21. Together With No Smiles

Since his mornings were quiet, Darren wasn't pleased when Leigh woke up the people who usually slept later in the morning. One of those people was the oracle and it was his opinion that the less of the oracle he saw, the better. He was curious though. The only reason why everybody, including Zahreen, would be forced to wake up and get ready would be for some sort of announcement or plan. He joined Fara on the ground as she pulled her auburn hair into a loose bun instead of her regular braid.

"You feeling causal today?" he asked as he sat down. He didn't see Fara dress down very often, even if in this case, dressing down just met wearing her hair looser. She was usually what everybody expected an exemplary soldier to look like, so something little like doing her hair differently didn't go unnoticed by Darren. She smiled softly at him, tucking a lock of hair that didn't make it into her bun behind her ear.

"I thought I would do something different with my hair for once. You know, just to mix things up a bit," she responded quickly. "What do you think Leigh's up to?"

"I haven't got a clue," Darren muttered. "But it must be a big deal if sleeping beauty has to be awake for it." The oracle was on his stomach, head buried in his arms. He looked like he was dragged out of his tent, maybe by his bear friend, and left for dead.

"Can I get everybody's attention, please?" Leigh asked out loud, his voice booming. The man looked old but damn, could he ever make his voice carry if he wanted to. Darren looked over at the oracle again. He didn't budge. "In the interest of supplies and making sure we have enough tents for everybody we will be recruiting in the future, we'll be pairing everybody up as tent mates. This is nonnegotiable – you keep the partner assigned to you. Not everybody will be partnered up based on who will get along the best but rather, who we thought you would learn from."

"We?" Darren mumbled under his breath. He glanced over at Ajax, who was just sitting down beside them, late to the party that he probably helped plan. Helping Leigh organize tent mates seemed like Ajax would be interested in. "What did you do?"

"What are you talking about?" Ajax asked, though he didn't pull off innocent well. Darren didn't trust him.

"Darren, you're going to be paired up with Igneous."

If the oracle was only half asleep before, he was wide awake now. "Wait, what? He hates me! I'm not sleeping in the same space he's going to sleep!"

"And I'm not sleeping with a spoiled brat like him!"

"Don't act like I'm the only spoiled one! I'm not the only one who had people around to answer my every whim. I just work for my position, that's the only difference!"

"Like anybody could call sitting around delivering bad news work! You must be so exhausted."

"Are we going to be sure that they'll survive if we put them together?" asked the not-so-feminine female of their group. Darren had yet to learn most of their names and he only knew Leigh and Gerben's names, and he didn't quite know why he knew the bear's name. Maybe it was just odd enough for it to stick out in his mind. "I swear, if they keep this up all night, I'll slit both of their throats myself. I get cranky when I can't get any sleep."

"And you seem perfectly delightful already," Charles said with a smile.

"Let them talk their spat out," Leigh said with a hand wave. "We can switch them if it gets physical but I doubt it'll come to that. At any rate, the next pairing will Charles and Ajax."

Darren definitely knew that Ajax was involved in helping Leigh with the pairings. Charles didn't seem to be a bad person to board with, he seemed easy going and it wasn't like Ajax was serious all the time either. They were two low-key people. Leigh continued with the names but Darren wasn't really listening, since he didn't know most of the people involved so he didn't care if their pairings were good or not. He only tried to tune into names he knew.

"Fara and Garath."

"Who the heck is Garath?" Darren mumbled. "And should you really be paired up with a man?"

"I don't think any of the men here are super interested in starting any sort of relationship, so I feel safe with them," Fara said with a shrug, biting her lips. "But I think Garath is one of the ones who helps prepare food everyday. It should be fine."

"If you say so..." he whispered back. He knew he shouldn't even be worried about Fara, she was able to take care of herself, probably better than he could take care of himself. Why was he concerned then? His feelings weren't settled, he wanted to share a tent with Fara, not Igneous. He just didn't want to say anything about that.

"And finally, Zahreen will be on his own." Darren could see that happening. Zahreen needed his own tent or he would wander far away to take care of himself. The fact that he needed such strict privacy somehow made him both seem human and non-human at the same time. He needed privacy to take care of himself but there still wasn't any proof that he wasn't just an enchanted suit of armour that could walk and talk on its own. The armour was completely inconvenient to everybody but he was sure Zahreen had some strange, fucked up reason for it. None of the oracle's friends looked too impressed but at least Ajax was useful in that regard.

* * *

"According to Leigh, we're heading into a bigger town that has stables for flying mounts so we should be able to find some more air support in there. If we're going to battle against Zahan, it will be useful to have more than just the oracle's dark flier. There is apparently a festival coming up too," Ajax informed them when they were finally out on the road. They were trailing behind the oracle's people, behind one of the supply wagons. Zahreen walked as he always did but Charles was riding with Darren. He was sitting in the saddle backwards, forcing their backs together. Darren wouldn't dare think of sitting in a saddle backwards, didn't even really think it was possible to be comfortable like that especially when squished in with somebody else. He was a little uncomfortable.

Charles seemed to be fine, though.

"Ah, it should be about time for the summer festival. It's usually the only one I go to," Charles said with a shrug. "It should be fun though. The nobles all offer everybody copious amounts of alcohol to make them forget about all the fact that this country is a mess. It works too, only for about a week though. You know, once the river's all dry."

"All of the nobles do this?" Fara asked.

Zahreen nodded. "The smaller villages usually don't get anything too special. Those people have to travel to the bigger villages or towns for the parties but yes, the nobles think they can please everybody by throwing parties four times a year to celebrate some dragon or something vague and idiotic like that. It's a great time for slaves to attempt escapes since everybody is drunk but that happens more in Valburn."

Darren noticed one of the oracle's men looking back on them, the one with shoddy looking clothes, joined them quite recently, and had an axe. He didn't look angry but there was a strange glint in his eye that set him edge. Did they say something? The girl beside him said something, making the man look away. Zahreen seemed to have noticed but he didn't say anything about those two.

"At any rate, I can't wait for the free wine!" Charles said happily. "I say... most of the people here could use something to make them relax for once. Imagine if Igneous was drunk! He would totally be a wine person."

Darren shook his head. It didn't matter what state the oracle was in, whatever he said, people would take him seriously. There was nothing interesting about that. He wasn't bitter at all.

"It would make my day if we could get the oracle plastered," Zahreen said with a laugh.

Fara rolled her eyes and sighed. "It figures you would enjoy something like that. Still, it's been a while since I had any wine. I think the last time... it was with you, right?" She turned to face Darren. He nodded. It was the last time he had wine too, celebrating a good year of training. Not that any of that matter to Zahreen but at the time, everybody was proud of their progress. He tried to remember if Ajax was there but he couldn't say he paid much attention to everybody who was there. There were a lot of faces, faces he didn't have a name to connect them with, if he could remember the faces at all.

"Were you there too, Ajax?"

He shook his head. "I was with my father at the time. Despite being allowed to be part of Adoss' military, I often didn't get the chance to attend any sort of social gatherings, even if you happened to be there."

"Yeah, I can see why. You have to keep up with studies," Darren mumbled. He much preferred training himself but the only way he was allowed to keep up with it with everybody else instead of having a personal trainer at the castle was to stay on the good side of the tutors. Lauren never seemed to have needed to study as often as he had to.

"Of course! Not that it was ever my favourite part of the day but it seems to have come in handy lately, no?"

"You were the one who helped Leigh with the tent stuff, right?" Fara asked, pointing an accusatory finger at him. Ajax nodded.

"It was mostly to make sure Zahreen got his own tent. Are you mad about being paired up with Garath? He seems nice and quiet."

Charles snorted. "After making sure you were set up too, no? You're brutal for throwing Darren under the carriage like that! And poor Igneous looked utterly betrayed."

"That was Leigh's idea. I only agreed with him."

"Same thing!" Darren shouted.

Ajax held up his hands. "I know you're upset but you two really do need to learn to get along. Not to mention, it's easier to protect one tent instead of two."

"What the heck, Ajax? You don't think I can defend myself?"

"It's not that we're concerned about that," Ajax said with a frown. "It's just that you and the oracle's survival takes priority."

Darren hated that notion. Perhaps it was because he saw himself as part of the army, rather than one who commanded it or was above the ranks of everybody else in it. He didn't view his life as being 'worth more' than Fara or Ajax's lives but he was probably one of the only ones to think that way. The only other person he felt that could understand what it felt like would probably be the oracle, since he looked too much like a softy to just let others sacrifice themselves for him.

The others continued to talk around him but Darren's mood turned sour. He didn't feel like talking anymore. He was sure that the others noticed because they didn't turn the conversation to him. Once they were in the town, when the horse stables were rented for their mounts since it was more convenient and Darren was busy getting his horse settled into the rent stall did somebody approach him. When he heard the clicking of armour, he thought of it must have been Zahreen who came to bother him but he was surprised to see that it was Leigh.

"Is something the matter?"

"No," he said at first as he began to remove the saddle and bridle from his horse, hanging them up in the stall. Leigh gave him a stern look, one that strangely reminded him of his late father. Not that his father gave him a stern look like that in their recent times but Darren and Lauren both got that look often when they were younger. "What?" he spat out.

"Maybe you look grumpy all the time but are you upset about being set up with Igneous? You should be happy to know I managed to rent out most of the buildings, so we can all have our own room in the inn."

Well, that was good news but he wasn't bothered by the oracle, at least not for now. "No. I don't like it but I can deal with it. Why are you so concerned anyway? Aren't you supposed to be the oracle's babysitter? I can watch myself."

"I'm also a soldier of Adoss and I do have my own children, even if they're independent now," Leigh stated, crossing his arms. "Making sure Igneous is happy is my primary job but I still care about everybody else."

Darren rolled his eyes. He wasn't looking for a replacement for his father quite yet. He also didn't need Leigh to hover over him. He glared, making Leigh's sympathetic smile fall.

"I don't want to talk about it. I'm fine with the current arrangements. I was curious about where the oracle wanted to go though, since you're here. Does he have a plan or is he wandering around?" It was a stupid topic transition but it was one he wanted nonetheless. Besides, he never did really find out if the oracle had some real ambition or if he was just fleeing Zahan and planning on finding temporary sanctuary.

"He wants to go to Vedia. He saw some blue-haired manakete in a pool in a vision and we suspect that it must be the supposed serpent that protects the Queen."

"And do you have any plans on getting him to the island that the royal palace is on or are you just going to bank on his oracle status getting him everywhere he needs to go?"

"It sounds like you have an idea."

"And it sounds like you didn't. Normally, I wouldn't help him, but I know somebody and I'd like to see him again," Darren started, deciding to give his horse a good brushing before he would leave him for the night. "His name his Thurin. He's the only son of Queen Raila and we write to each other a lot, so we're good friends. He has his own ship, so if we can find that, then I'm pretty sure I can get him to let the oracle into the Vedian palace."

Or at least, perhaps Thurin would be willing to go. From what he understood from the other prince's letters, Thurin was in the middle of some family drama, so he may try to just steer clear of the palace in general. When he thought about it, the last time he received a letter from Thurin had been some time before the oracle gave his father the death wish so it was likely he was actually avoiding the palace. He probably didn't pick up his letter from the palace.

Then again, the oracle did have the strange ability to make people listen to him. Perhaps, he would be helpful in sorting out the mess that was the Vedian royal family, even if their drama wasn't making the country fall apart. They kept it private, so private that Darren wasn't even quite sure what all of the drama entailed, but it was his duty as a friend to help Thurin out.

"That would be appreciated, Darren. I know you don't like him, and you have your own reasons, but you're a good kid."

"Pfft, I didn't need you to tell me that."

* * *

Veiser felt something odd all morning, a small nagging sensation in his chest that left his agitated. Everything was going smoothly on his end. The castle was cleaned, Russell's troop were satisfied for the time being and for the most part, they were lazing about, and he sent his report to Weinstrad. In fact, he was bored and he knew he had the potential to be a lot more than just the babysitter of a bunch of animals. Not only could he wield dark magic, magic that no novice could use, but he could do it without a tome and use his staff to use multiple spells. His skills were practically unmatched. He could be by Asteria's side, he the chance to be to close to her too since was she most interested in one's merit and abilities, but he was stuck with Russell and Weinstrad.

He was in the peripheral in the circle of people Asteria kept close. It wasn't close enough.

So that left mind to consider the nagging feeling.

He decided to leave the palace for the time being. He doubted that Russell cared at all if he left and he had no idea where he was anyway, nor did he care to disturb him if he was busy with his boy toy. The nagging feel was definitely stronger, once he was outside of his barrier. He leaned against the walls of the palace, trying to concentrate on feeling the energies in Valburn. The source of the nagging feeling had to be inside of the city, otherwise it would be too far away for him to feel.

Actually, the sensation was getting stronger.

Eventually, a woman came into sight and immediately, Veiser knew that she was the source of the strange feeling. He was keen on all things magic and she was an anomaly. She was quite the looker too, with black, wavy hair that covered her right eye and pale skin. She was wearing a red dress that went to her knees, with a long sleeves and black, flowing designs sewn in. She wore black sandals, with the strings crossing up her calves. Veiser had a feeling she knew she was pretty and if he were in her sandals, then he would use it his advantage.

"It was you then. I felt something strange all morning and you're its source." With her close, he could properly define what that nagging feeling was – the spirit that clung to her must have been trying to get them together. It was probably drawn to strong magical talent, magic such as his. "You've charmed a spirit, haven't you? Not many people like you exist, so you're quite the specimen in regards to magical research. Nice job."

"Thank you, but I don't care for magical research," she said with a shrug. "Were you the ones who killed the king and the queen?"

He couldn't tell if she was like the mercenary from earlier, the one who demanded to know what they planned on doing and wanted Zahan to fix all of Fraedia's problems. He wasn't interested in pushy people.

"And if we are?"

"Then I suppose I should congratulate you all on a job well done. Personally, I wanted nothing more than to burn them alive, but I doubt even the slowest death would satisfy my hatred for them," she mumbled quietly, offering another shrug before her amber colour eye moved away from him, looking down on something to her left. Veiser could feel the spirit flare, as if in excitement. She held her right hand to her chin, the intricate red mark on the back of it confirming Veiser's speculation. "Say, what of the colours you wear? Is it by choice or are you from Zahan?"

"I'm from Zahan."

"Then Artemis was right," she mumbled to herself. The spirit had a name then? It had to particularly strong, perhaps it was even once human at some point, instead of an ancient, spirit that may have always existed. It was honestly quite fascinating.

Making a deal with a spirit was quite dangerous. With a regular person wielding magic from a tome, the actual act of casting was calling upon a spirit, giving it some energy, then the spirit would do your bidding and result in a spell. The tome acted as an aid, an amplifier of your own magical prowess, but the magic is from the interaction of those spirits. Letting one into your body, and then making a contract with it, granted great magic prowess but then the spirit had constant access to its host energy, cutting their lives significantly shorter. It was just the price for power.

Artemis sounded like, and felt like, a particularly strong spirit. The girl was a dead girl walking but as long as she was still alive, she would be immensely useful both as a fighter and as a consultant in his own interests. Even if she was not interested in research like he was, she had directly access to a spirit for him to talk to. It seemed to be able hear him, to observe its surroundings and act on it. Or perhaps, the spirit would prefer to have a different pronoun?

"I highly doubt our Queen would say no to somebody like you if you were interested in joining our ranks. You have a talent nobody else in the army quite has, so you would definitely garner her attention." At least, that was what he said. It didn't happen to him yet and she was on par with him, not in any sort of skill he was sure but just the fact that she had her spirit. He couldn't even say if she had any magical talent on her own, it could just all be from the spirit. "At least, I'm assuming that the entire reason why you asked of my origin was because you had some interest in tagging along. Or perhaps, your spirit does?"

"I suppose I have nothing better to do. With the king and queen dead, I have nothing to reach for," she said calmly. A small smile slowly spread across her face, the eye that wasn't tucked under hair narrowing. "It might be fun to watch the rest of Haelin burn."

She might be amusing, Veiser decided. At least he had somebody somewhat intelligent to speak to now, which was infinitely better than the current situation he found himself in. Perhaps through her, he could be noticed by Asteria too. After all, he was the one who found her and convinced her to join them.

"Welcome to Zahan's army, Miss...?"

"You can call me Estella."

"My name is Veiser. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance," he said with a bow.

* * *

"Demitri, do you have a second in commander here? Or somebody who could be considered as much?" Asteria asked as she drew up a document she wanted presented to the people of Adoss at the desk that King Jared seemed to have been using before he was killed. She could see how Demitri committed the deed too – he busted through the window with the help of his wyvern, bypassing any sort of security King Jared may have had. The window was still smashed but the glass had been cleaned and the window was sealed with boards until it could be replaced. It wasn't pretty to look at and it was easy to lose track of time when she couldn't see outside but otherwise, Asteria couldn't complain. She didn't plan on staying long anyway.

Demitri was always close by, leaning against the door of the office, his arms across his chest. He simply watched her most of the time with a more passive look on his face than she was used to from him, unless he was barking orders at everybody in her place, as to make sure she wasn't disturbed.

"Why do you ask?"

"I need to go The Barren again, so I can't stay here. It would also be foolish of me to keep you here when you have more use on the field. I need somebody to stay here and watch over Adoss for me, to make sure that everybody follows my will," she said, indicating to the piece of parchment underneath her arm. "Is there somebody like that here?"

"Yes... but why are you going to The Barren again? There's nothing there."

Asteria debated on telling him. It was one thing for Erin to know, she needed her scholarly abilities and Erin actually felt like a friend to her. Demitri, more than any of the others, felt like her shadow, moving when she did. If she told him about the voice she heard at the Barren would surely make her sound like she wasn't capable of ruling, that she wasn't completely sound in the head. She would be more confident if she had Erin backing her up.

"I'll explain later, once we've grouped up with the rest of the generals. Who is it that you have in mind to leave in charge here?" she asked, turning her attention back to her decree. She signed the bottom of it, then withdrew her seal stamp and applied ink to the end of it, stamping it down beside her signature.

"Her name is Riza. Adon would also make a good commander but he may be a bit too cruel if you want everything to be close to normal in Adoss," he mumbled carefully.

"You don't think I'm doing enough, do you?" Asteria asked. "I certainly want things from Adoss. We'll get first pick of their crops and at a discount but it doesn't suit my interest to leave Adoss in ruins. I look out for Zahan first and foremost but I don't want or even need to destroy another country to do that. Or do you doubt my abilities?"

Demitri shook his head. "I doubt the abilities of those who will be left behind. You are a great Queen and Zahan is doing better because of you but Riza isn't going to be as good as you. Your cousin and your uncle aren't going to be as good as you. If you don't leave behind a good foundation in Adoss before you leave just as you have worked to keep a foundation in Zahan, you will regret it."

"I know this," she stated simply. It was why she didn't want to interrupt the daily lives of ordinary citizens too much, or even that of the people in the military. She didn't want to give the people too much of a reason to fight back, so oppression was not an option. Maybe it would be easier to just tell Demitri about the voice she heard in the Barren.

"I would urge you to wait until going back to the Barren, for whatever reason you had. It cannot be more important than making sure your influence in Adoss is unshakable."

Perhaps that was true. She only wanted to go because it had been so long since she had heard that voice that she just wanted to update it and get the go-ahead to continue following its plan while Erin found something that would protect her from it. Asteria was still all too aware of the fact that the only reason why she was not currently a target was because she was the one to approach it first. For the time, it needed to her to act in its interest, as it was still sealed away. How long would that last though? Would she just be the last royal on the list when her usefulness to it ran out? Of course, if she knew more of what the voice wished to accomplish, then she could probably form some sort of logical defence for herself.

It was what she was hoping she could find at the Barren. She supposed she could always come back, it wouldn't take more than two days to fly there, talk to it, and fly back.

"No, it isn't," she decided, picking up her document and turning around as much as she could in her chair to pass it over to Demitri. He bounced himself off the wall and retrieved it. "Make sure this document is read out loud to the people of Adoss over the next couple of days and to the soldiers here. This is how I want our occupation in Adoss to go, so make sure everybody knows it. In the mean time, have the servants set up a hot bath for me and make sure that the former princess is one the servants."

"Of course," he said, taking the document and leaving. Asteria merely sighed before leaving after him, to await for her bath in the bedroom she was temporarily occupying.

* * *

 _Hurrah for 4am uploads!_

 _Does it feel like we're trapped in Fraedia? It feels like that to me. I think... half of the characters I got are from Fraedia and not all of them are introduced yet. I think there's still... five from the top of my head? I think there's something about a miserable country that just inspires people._

 _I'm also quite excited for Vedia! I've been developing Thurin a lot lately, even though he's not going to appear for only a few chapters._


	22. Night of the Cheer

When Igneous woke up late in the morning, he heard Leigh, Darren, Zahreen, and Elena all discussing something outside of the inn, under his window. They were talking relatively quietly, so he couldn't exactly hear what they're talking about even when he approached the window, but he knew he would probably hear about it later, so he decided to just get ready for the day.

He had no idea how much time passed when he was finally dressed and ready to go, just long enough that the group disappeared from under his window by the time he ended up outside.

There was nobody behind him, nobody around him that he could see. At least, as far as people he knew and who care to know where he was going. Igneous was alone and he was glad. How much alone time did he ever really get? He would get in trouble for wandering off without telling anybody where he was going, he always did, but he thought it was worth it almost every time.

With his cloak hood up, Igneous wandered about the town but it didn't take him long for somebody to catch his eye. She was sitting outside of a purple tent, with long, wavy blonde hair and brown eyes that made her seem wise beyond her age. Igneous also noticed her curvy figure, the wide hips she had, but only because the sash around her hips and the rosy colour fabric that she had around her right shoulder and around her waist drew his eyes there.

She smirked, leaning back and shifting her weight to one hand. "My, my, look who's here. To what honour does the oracle grace me?"

"You know who I am?" Igneous didn't expect anybody to figure him out so fast outside of Adoss, especially while his hood was still up. She laughed, running a hand through her hair as she did so. It looked to be about as long as his was and probably about as thick. The longer he stood there, the more about her appearance he noticed. For one, she was heavily decorated, wearing several bangles on each wrist, a chain with golden discs hanging off of her hips, and a golden necklace hung of her neck. She probably wore earrings too, but her hair just concealed them. She even seemed to like makeup, using a dark shade around her eyes and she painted three dots under her eyes that were arranged vertically.

Her clothing was a little less interesting, with loose pink pants that still managed to follow the shape of her legs, and under the fabric around her chest, she had a black crop top.

"Of course. I'm not as stupid as the rest of the fortune tellers here, who are mad at the very idea of the oracle but couldn't pick one out on a street. I'm not mad at the oracles, for whatever that's worth. My name is Themis, by the way. Want to come inside?"

Igneous nodded, crawling inside with her. He was immediately jealous that he couldn't have a tent like that, full of comfortable looking pillows of many colours, along with a particularly large, flat one that she sat on one side of. Themis had stars, hearts, and beads hanging off of the poles that held her tent up made from glass by the looks of it, and an unlit lantern hung from the part of the tent where all of the poles met. He sat opposite of the flat pillow while she produced a pile of cards.

"I like to give advice," Themis said suddenly, as she handed him the deck of cards. "Selling fortunes, when you are guessing at best, is shady, no? People react and put their faith into these cards and their meanings and based off of their reactions. I can give them a talk and provide some meaningful advice."

"What if they don't react?" Igneous asked, staring down at the cards. When he found out that people used to do fortunes with cards, he supposed he thought that they would use playing cards similar to what Gerben, Saikur, and Leigh used in their off time, and he did see some of those decorated with swords, cups, sticks, and something that looked kind of like a gold coin. However, there were other cards that had nothing to do with anything that resembled a simple suit. They were pictures of men, women, and abstract ideas, though each still had a number and a name on them. The named ones were the ones that caught his attention the most.

"They always do," she said with a smirk. "It's probably because I don't try to do anything where people want to prove me wrong. I don't even charge people, I just like to talk to people. I get by because people find my advice useful and come back to give me something but of course, that's their choice."

Igneous frowned, pushing the cards together and handing them back. "Does it make me seem like the fortune tellers because people are charged to see me?"

"I wouldn't say so. Maybe to some people, but you actually see something, don't you?" she asked as she removed some of the cards, then shuffled the ones she held. "You wouldn't always understand what you see but even that's a lot more than anybody else can say. You're special, there has to be a reason why you have that ability."

She suddenly presented him with the cards.

"Pick the first three ones from the top. I can give you an example of how the cards can work."

Igneous did as he was told. She put the bigger cards down, then took the three cards from his hand, laying them down on the tent floor between the two of them. She flipped them over – from left to right, the cards read 'The Fool', 'Death', and 'The Hermit', though the hermit was upside down – facing Themis while the first two faced him. She chuckled when she saw them, bringing a hand to her chin.

"The Fool inspires new beginnings, being spontaneous and carefree. This is the part of your life you're adventurous, and while you don't know where life will take you, and keep going anyway. Death is simply an end. It can bring out new beginnings, or it may be a sign of transition and transformation, as you from the old to the new. Finally, there's the Reversed Hermit. Normally, the Hermit inspires soul searching, to look inside, and to think and reflect. Reversed however, means that you're isolating yourself – becoming a real hermit, so to say."

Igneous frowned. He could sympathize with the first card, he was sure that an end would come to him in some fashion but he didn't think that he was isolating himself. He could see the point though – her reading were general, general enough that somebody could connect with them easily and give Themis just to generate advice.

"You react the most to the Fool. You can see yourself in him, can't you? I wonder if the Hermit might be a bit of a miss... but then again, there is nobody like you anywhere else on Haelin. Anybody who was like you died before you were born. You're carrying on a legacy that two other oracles built up over time and people are sure to judge you if you end up being even a little bit different. Does the average person even treat you like an individual once they realize who they're talking to?"

Igneous had no response to that. It hit too close to home from somebody he only really just meant. He found himself staring at the cards, unsure of what to really do anymore.

"I take it that you are different from the others and that people have noticed. I have to wonder... what makes you so special?" Themis asked. When Igneous looked up, she was actually smirking. "Do you mind if I come along until we figure that out?"

"I can't tell you what to do. You came come if you want but I'm not sure what good it will do you. Nobody seems to know what the reason is, not even me. I'm probably the person who knows the least about my powers," Igneous answered with a sigh. She frowned.

"You say that like it's a bad thing. It only means that there's a lot to learn about yourself. The Reversed Hermit has another meaning you know, I just didn't think it applied to you at first. You may not be looking inside of yourself enough. If it's possible, you should just sit down and think about what is going in your life and how you're reacting to it or what you're doing about it. If you want to explore your abilities, the Fool's spontaneous nature and love for adventure can help you as well. Trying a bunch of different things is a good way to see what you're good at and what you might need some work on."

He was about to say something in agreement when somebody yanked on his cloak and promptly pulled him out of the tent.

"I personally don't mind when you decide to go out on your own but you should tell me that you're leaving at all first, okay?" Gerben mumbled, letting go of his cloak once he was outside of the tent. He didn't appreciate being dragged out like that but at least Gerben didn't actually touch him. Themis poked her head out of the tent as Igneous pushed himself up from the ground and began dusting himself off.

"Are you going to take me back now?" Igneous asked. Gerben was the most lenient between the three of them but even he had a limit. Gerben didn't look angry but sometimes, he kept a straight face even if he was upset. "And how did you find me?"

"No, apparently, we're staying for that festival so just come back before the sun goes down," he said with a shrug. "And whatever you use to wash your hair recently might smell subtle to you but I can smell it anywhere in the town. Who were you visiting?" he asked, pointing at Themis.

"My name is Themis. The oracle said I could come along," she answered, leaving her tent.

"You know this whole thing might blow up later and we're likely to clash with the Zahan army, right?" Gerben asked, running a hand through his hair as he let out a sigh.

"I was aware. An oracle wouldn't need to leave the temple if everything in their life was fine," she said with a shrug. "And trust me, I'm good at talking to people. I can probably get you guys some discounts with merchants. I can watch myself, I promise, but thank you for the warning."

"She might as well follow us, no?" Igneous asked with a shrug. Gerben studied her for a second, then he nodded.

"I think she's right, she can probably take care of herself." he said with a nod. "I don't think Leigh or anybody else will have a problem if she has her own supplies."

"Great! I'll be here until you guys decide to leave, so come find me before then," she said with a smirk before snaking back into her tent.

"What an interesting woman," Gerben mumbled, then tapped Igneous on the back again. "Anyway, I'll let Saikur know I said you could stay out. Remember – before sunset, okay?"

He nodded.

* * *

There was still some lingering feelings tension from a conversation that Igneous missed when he got back to the inn. It seemed like the people who had some sort of say, or at least cared about how their group was progressing, were sitting together in the lobby. He wondered if he should just go to his room and come back later, but for some reason, he stayed.

"What happened?" he asked, against his better judgment.

Leigh stood up. "Igneous, do you want to stay for the festival?"

"Didn't we already decide that we were staying?" Darren mumbled with a roll of his eyes. "I still think we could end up at another town and still make it to one if we really want to go to one."

Igneous rolled his eyes too, then looked away from him. "What is it for? Gerben mentioned said something about one but I have no idea what it's for."

"We talked about it on the way here," Saikur said.

"I was half asleep." It was true. Igneous could remember the bad news but anything that happened during the walk was blurry. Saikur sighed but he said nothing else.

"It's one of the four festivals that Fraedia throws to celebrate the dragon that saved the country. At least, that's what the stories say - there's no mention of a dragon protecting Fraedia at all in the literary texts. All the nobles throw a grand feast, complete with all of the ale and wine one could ask for. It's a week long party, basically," Elena said with a shrug, though her response felt horribly rehearsed, something she had to say fairly often. She was reading some sort of scroll, so she clearly didn't have all of her attention on the conversation anyway, but Igneous was still a little concerned. "Darren and Saikur think we should just leave when we hire some air support."

Igneous didn't have to ponder on it for too long. "A break sounds nice."

"Have you seen anything lately?" Elena asked suddenly, peering over her scroll.

"No, not really." The last one he could recall was about Reina and he didn't exactly want to share that. He had a feeling that if Elena was asking that, it would be because she hoped that it would be relevant to their trip, something that could sway Darren and Saikur. He had nothing though. Sometimes, he just didn't see things very often outside of actually reading people and it wasn't like he could force visions to happen. The only ones he had a choice in seeing were the ones he saw when he touched somebody's hand and even then, he couldn't choose the subject of the visions.

And he wasn't sure if he wanted to do that anyway, just to see what could happen in the future when he wanted or when somebody asked him to. The visions didn't exactly work out when it came to leaving the temple. He felt bad about touching Saikur's hand at all.

"It's... actually been a while," he added with a frown when a brief silence had settled.

"Are you sure you still work? There's no point in you being here if you can't see the future," Darren mumbled.

"Oh, shut up! Just because I don't see visions all the time doesn't mean my powers don't work! And you don't seem to believe in it anyway, so why do you even care?" Igneous growled, stepping closer to him. Darren huffed, crossing his legs and leaning his chair backwards onto two legs as he crossed his arms.

"It's not exactly that I don't believe in your visions," Darren said, his voice surprisingly calm. "My biggest problem with your so-called job is that everybody seems to lose their ability to think for themselves when you tell them what you saw. You could lie and nobody would know any better until it didn't come true, but they could just make your words happen anyway, no? My father let his death happen, all because you told him he would die."

"I can't control what people do after they see me, so stop blaming me for his death! I liked him! He's much more personable than you are and he actually cared if I was feeling a bit down! Sometimes, I can't understand how somebody so kind ended up raising people like you and your sister! It's so unfair that he's dead and I have to deal with you instead!" Igneous had the urge to push his stupid chair over, but instead, he just stood there. He liked to think he was more mature than that, but it was hard to keep his feet planted. "I'm tired of being the 'Oracle of Death'. Sometimes, I'm tired of being the oracle but we can't all get what we want!"

Darren shut up, his teeth clamping down on his lips. Everybody did, even Will and Orla who just walked into the lobby and then promptly walked back out the door when they seemed to sense that something just happened. When Igneous paused for a moment, and when what he actually said dawned on him, he bolted before he could think about it too much. He ran up to his room, pulled the chain to lock it and then pulled a chair underneath it, closed the window, and plopped down on his bed, hugging the inn pillow close to his chest. Igneous sighed deeply into it.

He wasn't really sure how he was going to get out of his situation.

And thankfully, nobody bothered him for a while. It was a sturdy knock at the door that woke him up when he didn't realize he fell asleep in the first place. He waited, until Leigh declared his presence on the other end. Reluctantly, he pulled away the blankets and sheets he had been comfortable under and let the older man into the room. Leigh closed the door quietly.

He was wearing a thin, black shirt with long sleeves and loose fitting, cream pants. It was rare to see Leigh without his armour on but Igneous enjoyed it whenever it happened. Everything about Leigh looked different when he wore armour. He was the image of a dutiful knight, his face serious and strict, his greying hair somehow making him look even more serious and older beyond his age. Without the armour though, he was a father. His face was kind and endearing, he smiled more often, and his voice turned soft.

"Do you want to switch tents?" Leigh asked as Igneous resumed his position on the bed, not under the safety of the blankets, but he was clutching the pillow to his chest again.

"I thought that the assignments were non-negotiable," he mumbled into the pillow.

"We wanted people to learn how to get along with each other," Leigh said. "We thought that you two would talk it out if it meant just being able sleep in peace. We may have been wrong in that thinking. You two seem to remind each other of unsettling things, and we can't force you two to just get along. Fara is willing to trade. She was going to room with Garath, and I trust him to take good care of you."

"I'd prefer that," Igneous said quietly. "And what about the festival?"

"We'll stay. Darren and Saikur are the only ones who want to keeping going, so we'll stay here and give everybody a break within reason. I don't want anybody to get rusty, so stay on top of your studies with Iniabi, alright? And you if you see Darren, just walk away if you're not ready to talk diplomatically with him."

So he wasn't in trouble from earlier when he wandered away from the inn without telling any of his guardians were he was going, nor was he in trouble for arguing with Darren. Igneous would need to be careful though, or else he would get in trouble.

"I can do that," Igneous said. He would try stay silent around Darren at any rate. At least studying with Iniabi was something that he actually liked.

"I'm glad to hear it," Leigh said happily.

* * *

Igneous stayed mostly in his room until the first day of the festival, deciding to keep up with studies instead by studying tomes and answering questions that Iniabi made up to guide his oddly independent studies. He poured over any tome that Iniabi or Caalya would give him, even all of the dark tomes that Iniabi had and warned him not to try. Igneous could only vaguely see why he needed a warning – one seemed to need a specific mindset to pull it off and Igneous wasn't sure he could get himself into a place like that to use it.

It thrived off of negative feelings, it seemed. It didn't seem to be an evil magic, but negative feelings themselves could lead somebody over an edge if they weren't careful.

He left his room sometimes, and even conversed with others when Leigh wanted him to meet the two people he hired. One of them, who he remembered to be called Penny, did not look like a mercenary at all, considering that she had a lot more armour than he expected. She had a breastplate, along with greaves and braces protecting her arms and legs, all of them finely decorated with some sort of phoenix design, all of it sitting over a sleeveless, blue dress. Her greaves sat on black stockings and heeled boots, and her braces sat over brown, fingerless gloves that stretched to her elbows. She accessorized as well, with a blue headscarf in her blonde hair, and her hair was pulled into a low ponytail, which let Igneous see her crescent moon earrings.

Penny was also tall and slim, though toned, and it just made her seem all that more polished. She looked like she should be in military service, not taking mercenary jobs.

Tahno, the other person Leigh hired, was much the opposite. He was also tall, but he was more heavily built. His blond hair was slicked back and his dark green eyes seemed to regard everything like it was a funny joke. He had a scar over his right eye, and another stretching over his right arm, which he scratched before folding his arms over his chest and leaning against the wall. His clothing was simple, just a black short sleeved shirt and loose fitting, sand coloured pants that were tucked into his boots. Igneous wasn't so sure if he would like him.

The festival didn't start until later in the evening, so that was when he decided to put on his best clothing. Realistically, it wasn't as though he had much to choose from. He decided to take a red, loose fitting shirt that he usually slept in, pulled it tight against his body, and pinned it off to the side. His midriff wasn't very toned but he decided to keep his shirt pinned up and exposed it anyway. While his shirt was tight, his pants were loose. He wore his flat shoes for the first time since he left the temple, tied his hair up into a half-bun, piled on his bangles, then debated on putting on his leather gloves.

Ultimately, he decided not to, slipping on a single gold ring on instead.

When he finally left his room, the sun was almost setting. He could also see that he was the only one who was willing to dress up a bit – the most anybody did was shed their armour and cloaks.

"Ah, you're not wearing your gloves I see," Amaryllis said suddenly, slinking up from behind him, almost like a shadow. "Are you open to readings then?"

"You want to be read?" Igneous asked. He couldn't quite understand what she needed from him but he wasn't going to argue with her. He was actually surprised that she had asked at all.

"You just need my hand, right?" she asked, removing the glove from one of her hands and grabbing his hand.

 _At first, the only thing he could see was a dark figure, almost completely concealed by the shadows except for his silver coloured hair that shined brightly from the contrast. He could see enough of the figure's silhouette to tell that it was a male he was looking at and an adult. A moment later, Amaryllis came into view, her silver hair flowing loosely behind her. She was running forward, reaching out, only for another figure to grab her wrist and halt her completely, even pulling her back._

 _Igneous could see Amaryllis glaring herself down before the vision disappeared completely._

"There's somebody you're looking for, and you have everything you need to find him," Igneous began once he regained his bearing. It was always a little jarring to come back from a vision. He had to become aware of spatial position again, whether he was standing or sitting, or somewhere in between, and the vision often had an environment that did not match the external one. "The only reason why you can't find him is because you hesitate. You don't want to find him. The only thing keeping you from getting to him is yourself."

Her cheeks burned red and her lips curved inwards, almost to the point where they disappeared as her hands curled in fists. It took her a moment to process everything before she relaxed, twirling the amulet over in her hand instead while her eyes wondered to the side, looking anywhere but at Igneous. "Myself...? What does that mean?"

"For some reason, you don't think you're ready yet... or something. Why that's the case, you have to find out for yourself. I can only tell you what I see," Igneous said quietly. "I wish you luck all the same though!"

He walked away before she could respond, walking to the centre of town on his own, though he was still surrounded by several people who were also going to the festival. It was an exciting time to be around, he decided. The town square was decorated beautifully with hanging lanterns, coloured strips of fabric that were tied together and stretched from building to building, and there were flowers everywhere, either on the ground in the form of petals or in vases decorating the town. He could hear music playing as well, though he couldn't see where it came from.

Igneous didn't recognize the song but it had a steady beat, the song constantly rising and falling in both speed and volume. He could dance to it if he had more confidence to do so, or any ability to dance. He wished Mira was around to show him but she seemed content in staying inside for the night, along with Reina and Elena.

It was also the first time that Igneous spotted Fraedian soldiers, decorated in purple. When he thought about it though, the flowers were purple, as were most of the fabric that ran from building to building. The soldiers walked with what almost resembled a frown, with their shoulders slouched. If they weren't walking, then they were leaning on their weapons or against the walls, yawning and lazily staring forward.

Igneous wondered how long it would take for them to jump into action with that sort of attitude. He let the thoughts leave his mind though, as he saw Orla and Charles toasting their glasses together. Orla wasn't usually hard to miss due to the impressive heights that ursurines grew to, but she had to bend her knees to toast Charles, who was unsurprisingly quite a bit shorter than she was.

"Oh, it's you." Igneous turned around and for a second, he didn't recognize the man who spoke to him. It came to him in just a moment though – he was one of the new recruits who joined them when they got to town. He had a glass of wine in each of his hands, with a smirk on his face that stretched from ear to ear. "Want one?"

"Where is everybody getting wine?" Igneous asked, eyeing one of the glasses. Tahno brought it down to his height and let him take it.

"Gulp that one down and I'll show you," he mumbled. "Here, cheers you little bastard!"

Igneous reluctantly toasted to that and they both bent their heads back, drowning the entire drink in one gulp. He swallowed hard, coughing as it burned downed his throat but somehow, he managed to keep it down. Tahno laughed, patting his shoulder harshly. Igneous stepped back to get away from it.

"I didn't think you had it in you! I thought you would spit it all out drinking that fast. Come, let's get some more drinks! One isn't nearly enough to last the night!" he said with a laugh. Igneous didn't quite know why he was following Tahno around for wine, but he figured he might as well experience what it was like to drink socially. The lady serving the drinks wasn't far away. It only took a couple of turns from the town square without needing to go through an alley to get to her.

She was a lady with pink hair, tied into a simple pony tail. She was a little on the short side, just like he was, wearing a plain black shirt with her sleeves rolled up. She smiled when she saw them, waving them over.

"You sure came back fast, didn't you?" she said, her smile turning into a smirk as she looked up to Tahno. "And you brought a friend! Here, give me your glasses and I'll give you some new ones. I got a friend cleaning them, so it's no worry."

He nodded, while Tahno just shrugged. With their glasses turned in, and new ones full of wine retrieved, they toasted again and took a sip before wandering around with Tahno leading the way. He still didn't know why he was hanging out with him. Igneous figured that Tahno would be a bit of a jerk when he saw him at the inn with that shit-eating grin on his face. It was the kind of face he imagined to be under Zahreen's helmet, but he wasn't exactly Zahreen.

Though speaking of Zahreen, it didn't take long for them to run into him, walking just outside of the town square. He was strangely quiet, constantly turning his head with his left hand sitting at one of the blades attached to his hips. He started chuckling when he turned to face Igneous though.

"I guess I owe you some gold, Tahno!" he said with a laugh. "The kid's already looking flushed and he's a bit darker than most of the people here!"

"He's only had two," Tahno chimed in, the simple grin he had earlier instantly taking a more sinister look to it. That grin he had back at the inn definitely returned and Igneous was reminded of why he didn't want to hang out with him in the first place. "He chugged the first one though."

They continued to laugh, so Igneous just walked away again to go find somebody he knew who wouldn't laugh or coddle him. At least he knew where the drinks were, so he could always find some more. He didn't mind the taste of wine if he swirled it in his glass, so he was probably going to go back for a third and maybe just stop there. Igneous had no intention of getting so drunk that he couldn't remember what happened the previous night.

Just as he turned the corner that got him further away from the town square and contemplated what he wanted to do next, a hand went over his mouth and he was tackled to the ground. Igneous struggled, kicking his legs until he was able to slip out and run, heading back to find Zahreen and Tahno. He didn't even look back. He just ran as fast as he could, his glass long abandoned. He skidded to a halt when he found another stranger who looked a little too eager to see him, a man who resembled one of the slave traders they encountered when Amaryllis came to their rescue. He ducked into alley, making it out to the other side before he had to stop and let himself breathe.

Igneous was stunned. All of the streets that surrounded the town square seemed busy and decorated, yet nobody acted any differently. He saw that the other time they were attacked by bandits but he thought that maybe, here, people would react to slave traders to at least save themselves. He stumbled, falling to his knees and supporting himself against the wall when he suddenly felt dizzy as well as tired from running. He was puzzled. He knew he drank a little fast, but it shouldn't have hit that fast or that hard.

He was getting sleepy, like he stayed up for way too long. He had no idea what was happening to him. It wasn't a vision, he would have seen something instead of pondering why he suddenly felt so bad. He doubted he was already blackout drunk with only two glasses of wine. Somebody followed him into the alley. Igneous forced himself to his feet, despite how exhausted he felt, and managed to force himself ahead enough to find his way out of the alley. It didn't help him though, for as soon as he managed to lay his eyes on the normal, everyday Fraedians, something was put over his head. He didn't get a chance to scream before his vision turned black and lost all feeling.

* * *

Gerben made it out to the town square a little later than he would have liked. Iggy was nowhere to be found inside of the inn and since there were flowers everywhere, he couldn't pinpoint the flowery scent that Iggy used. At least it was crowded. He could at least trust that Iggy was with somebody in their group, but he wanted to be near by considering there was alcohol around.

He found Charles and Orla first.

"Gerben! Are you going dry tonight? That would be a darn shame!" Orla said, raising her glass. He raised his eyebrow at her, crossing his arms.

"I'm staying dry tonight so that Iggy can taste wine if he wanted to. Have either of you seen him?"

"What a noble cause," Charles said with a laugh, raising his glass before taking a sip out of it. "But no, I haven't seen him. He's probably with somebody though!"

"I thought of that but still. I'm a little worried."

Orla frowned a little bit, leaning in close enough from behind that her chin rested on his shoulder. "Be careful not to be a spoilsport," she mumbled, poking his cheek. He swatted at her, making her spill some of her drink. "Too late for that I guess."

Suddenly, Charles hit the ground. He shook his head, trying to force himself onto his hands and knees before collapsing to the ground again. Gerben was beside him immediately. Charles was still breathing, breathing softly like he was asleep. He picked him off the ground, hoisting him his shoulder. Orla was able to stand on her feet but she was rubbing her eyes.

"Orla?"

"I feel really groggy all of a sudden," she answered, dropping the glass.

"Can you walk at all? If Charles is down, then maybe others are down too."

"I'll take Charles back to the inn," Orla mumbled, suddenly taking Charles from him. She lost her balance for a brief moment, but she righted herself and Charles was in her arms. "You go look for your cub."

He nodded and transformed, sniffing at the air. His sense of smell was heightened in his bear form, and for a moment, he could distinguish the smell of Igneous' flowery perfume, or whatever it was, from the smell of all of the flowers. He followed the smell to an alleyway. There was another scent there too, a person if he had to guess, but before he really had time to investigate, he was knocked to the ground by a female ursurine sporting white fur.

She sunk her claws into his skin. He growled in pain, then sunk into the piece of flesh closest to his teeth, all while trying to kick her off with his hind legs. They rolled, knocking down something and making Gerben's leg sting. It was worth the pain though, as he finally pushed her off and she transformed back into her human form.

Her short, white hair that just touched her shoulders, was the only thing that really set her apart from ursurines he was used to. Otherwise, she had stone cuffs around her wrists and ankles, and dark clothing that she pulled tight against her body using strings along her pants, with something similar that may have been pulling her shirt tight. Blood ran down her shoulder, closer to her neck where he bit her. She wasn't concerned about the bleeding though, letting it flow freely.

Gerben stayed in his bear form though. He growled, making his fur stand on end.

"My name is Daphne. It wasn't the name I was born with, but it was the name that Azalea gave me," she began, her voice flat. "And unfortunately, I require your cub. Ideally, I would not touch the cub of another ursurine, especially from an ursurine who does not live with other ursurines. I understand how much a human cub can mean if you don't have a mate and a cub of your own, but since Asteria desires him, then I desire him."

Gerben decided to transform. Standing took more effort than he would like to admit, but he couldn't speak in his bear form, otherwise he would have stayed in his bear form. He also quickly realized that the sharp pain earlier had been a large piece of wood that was sticking out his leg, probably from something they broke while fighting. "Why? What do you gain from having him in your possession?"

"I honestly have no idea what Asteria is planning. I only know that he's an objective. Since he's not with you though, then I assume I have to look elsewhere."

"LIKE I WOULD EVER LET YOU LAY A PAW ON HIM!" Gerben ran forward, landing a punch into her abdomen. Daphne recovered quickly, grabbing his arm and throwing him over her shoulder, making his back bounce off of the cobblestone path. He tore his arm out of her grip and transformed once again, ignoring the pain that came from shifting with open wounds. She followed suit just in time that his teeth dug into her shoulders instead of her neck, but unlike the last time, Gerben was on the offensive. His claws dug into flesh. He found out the hard way that her claws were actually thicker and probably a bit longer, as she flailed underneath him to get out.

Gerben managed to hold though, finally sinking his teeth close enough to her neck to make her pause. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his side and he was forced to let go, giving Daphne the chance to roll and knock him back. He was hit again by that sharp pain, which he quickly realized was an arrow. He had two of them in his side.

He couldn't hold the transformation anymore when the third one hit. He was on the ground, bleeding from three arrow wounds that stung more as he shifted back into his human form. He was also covered in deep scratches and teeth marks. Daphne shifted back too, approaching him slowly, perhaps to keep from irritating her neck wound too much. She bent down next to him, yanking his hair to pull his head off the ground. He was in too much pain to resist. Gerben could barely move his fingers, let alone try to fight back. Behind her, a girl wearing a black shirt, with pink hair tied into a pony tail stepped into view, a bow in one hand and an arrow in the other.

Gerben's vision blurred.

"He's one of the guardians, isn't he? Couldn't have been a good one, considering that the oracle isn't with him. He should be knocked out somewhere though."

She looked at his face, which he was sure looked pitiful by now, and laughed. "Thanks to earlier surveillance, we knew who you all were, so I simply used a glass with the sedative coated on the inside. Your oracle had two glasses, so there's no way he's awake right now."

All Gerben could manage was a growl. Daphne frowned, slamming his face into the ground before pulling on his hair again.

"And if I don't find him, then our soldiers probably will. Maybe even Weinstrad, considering he's in the air and all," the girl continued. "Come on, Daphne, let's not waste any more time on that bear. I have a bet with Weinstrad to win, after all!"

Daphne nodded, simply letting go of his hair and letting his head fall to the ground. Daphne gave him a strange look, almost like she pitied him and yet, didn't care about any of it at the same. It was the last face he saw before he passed out.

* * *

 _I didn't proof read this as much as I would have liked, but I figured that people would probably appreciate an update anyway._

 _And this kind of took a long time because I had to rewrite that last third of it with Gerben. Originally, I had a time skip but I figured that it would be better at the beginning of the next chapter, and I realized I was probably skipping too much by doing that._

 _Anyway, enjoy!_


	23. Battle at the Festival

"Damn it!"

It was Zahreen's tinny voice, so Darren instantly knew there was trouble to be had. This became all the more true when he saw the Fraedian guards run away from the direction of Zahreen's voice, and that signalled the regular civilians to begin running as well. He was just glad that he let Ajax and Fara convince him to bring a weapon just in case, strapped across his back just as they had theirs. The three of them exchanged a look, then nodded, running towards Zahreen voice.

He had both of his swords out, using them to simultaneously block attacks and attempt to strike down his enemies, only for him to have to use the sword to block another attack almost immediately. There were two people he was fighting against up close, but he also had to dodge magic attacks and somebody who had a javelin, which was attached to a chain for easier retrieval. It was strange to see Zahreen on the defensive at all. These guys didn't look to be anything special, so it shouldn't matter that he was outnumbered, yet Zahreen had a hard time getting an inch in them.

Tahno was on the ground, unconscious or asleep, yet nobody paid him any mind. Darren had half the mind to take him and at least prop him up against a building, but he doubted he could actually get Tahno out of the way without either one of them getting hurt. Tahno was oddly safe where he was.

Ajax attacked the mage, slicing their back and kicking them to the ground. When attention turned from Zahreen to them, Fara was the first to block their incoming attacks, using her lance to bat their weapons away. However, Darren quickly began to notice why they were giving Zahreen a hard time – their attacks were strangely synchronized. When Fara blocked one attack, she left herself open to the other one, who followed up on the attack of the first attacker to slice her arm with a sword. The cut was by no means serious, but she was caught off guard.

"Get the fuck out of here!" Zahreen growled as the javelin grazed his armour. He ignored the man, pivoting to go after the attackers, only for a pair of mages to come into view from behind, stopping him in his tracks with an attack that combined that sharp edges from wind magic and the burns from fire. He managed to shrug off the attack, his armour now covered in scratches.

"What about you?" Darren shouted, as he and Fara continued to battle against an axe user and a swordmaster.

"They're after you! It would be easier to protect you if you weren't around!" Zahreen called out to him before directing his attention the new mages instead. "If I can only just hold my own, you have no chance."

Darren agreed with that. Zahreen was just better than he was and if he was on the defensive because there were several people who actually seemed somewhat skilled, then Darren was in trouble. However, he didn't like the idea of just hiding while Zahreen fought all of his battles for him, even though most people in his position would just listen to him and run. They would probably prioritize being alive, since they had a kingdom to return to. Darren didn't stop moving to think about it though.

He had to block the axe after all, while Fara handled the swordmaster. Their backs were practically touching, their stances almost mirrored as they faced off their opponents. Ajax followed Zahreen, helping him to kill the two mages. Even while he and Fara paired up, Darren wasn't sure how they were going to get the upper hand. At best, they were evenly matched now, and there was still the man with the javelin who switch between trying to hit either him and Fara, or aimed at Zahreen and Ajax. It was exhausting to try to keep up between the multiple opponents.

He also noticed that they were slowly moving away from Ajax and Zahreen. He wasn't sure if they were unknowingly straying, or if the soldiers were just pushing them away from each other. He gulped hard. He doubted it was Ajax and Zahreen who were the ones moving away.

"Fara, we have to lose them now," he said as quietly as he could, trying to make sure that Fara was the only who could hear him. She nodded. There was nothing else said between them, but they both turned and simply ran. A javelin flew beside him but missed, clattering to the ground as they willed their legs to carry them faster.

They turned corners, twisting through narrow alleys. After running for what felt like a while, Darren noticed that their enemies didn't seem to be pursuing them. He let himself slow down, but he didn't stop. He didn't even want to turn his head to see if they were still being chased after all.

"Where are we going to go?" Darren asked as they rounded another corner. He couldn't have been running for long, yet his side was already burning. Fara was running with her lance in one hand, the pointed end face behind them, while using the other hand to brace her cut. She didn't respond. Was her cut deeper than he thought it was? He looked around, and the solution that came to mind was one he would rather reject if he could, but they couldn't keep running either.

He grabbed her wrist, since he didn't dare move the hand she was using to hold pressure, and dragged her to one of the houses that lined the street. She shook her head, but Darren ignored her, throwing the door open. He more or less shoved her inside, much to the horror of the family inside the house, then he let himself inside, pulling the chain to lock the door behind him. He hushed the family behind him, then for good measure, he propped a chair under the doorknob. He also noticed that the window was open, so he closed it and pulled the curtains across.

It meant that the moonlight couldn't get through, but the house was lit with a warm fire and candles anyway. It was pleasantly warm, he noted, not that it was all that chilly outside.

"Darren! What the heck are you doing?" she shouted in a whisper. "We're involving innocent people! Civilians!"

"Yeah, that's the point!" Darren shouted back, using the same volume she did. "They aren't going to look for us in a random house, there's too many of them to even begin to look for us. Besides, we have a little bit of gold thanks to the oracle. I'm sure we can compensate them if they are really bothered by us," he said. He propped his lance up against the wall near the door, then ripped Fara's lance out of her hands and did the same thing with her lance.

"Fine," she mumbled, letting herself relax. She took the floor, but leaned against the wall.

Darren approached the family. There were four of them all together, two adult women taking care of two children, though the children didn't look like either one of the ladies present. He thought it was nice to see people in a country like Fraedia care for kids who were probably orphaned. His impressions of the country was one where everybody was out for themselves, because there was nobody to look after them. The two adults were holding onto the two children defensively, throwing defiant looks their way, so Darren threw his hands up.

"I'm sorry for barging in, but my friend and I need a place to hide for the rest of the night and we could use some medical supplies. We honestly don't mean any harm to you or to your children. I swear this on the graves of both of my parents."

The two adults whispered among themselves, then nodded. "You stay here. I'll get our supplies," one of them said. True to her word, she came back a few moments later with some bandages, clean rags, and a waterskin. It wasn't a vulnerary, but he could still wash Fara's wounds and bandage her up. "This is all we have. We don't usually expect visitors and our children don't tend to play roughly, so we don't usually need to use any of it."

"No, this is great. Thank you."

"I didn't expect you to be this nice, Darren," Fara said with a laugh.

"Well, we are uninvited guests," he shot back. He sat down beside her, taking her injured arm as gently as he could. He pushed her sleeve up. "Now, let's get your wound taken care of."

"Have you noticed that you're injured as well?" she mumbled. Darren blinked, looking down his arms and chest, but he didn't notice anything out of the ordinary. She shook her head, then leaned toward him to outline a scratch on his neck with her finger. He put his hand over it – it seemed to be bleeding a lot but the wound didn't feel that deep. Maybe that lance didn't miss after all.

"Here, how about you let us help you?" It was the lady who originally stayed with the children. "We're not experts with wounds but you two should get some rest."

Darren blinked but he passed the bandages and waterskin back to her. "I thought you two didn't want anything to do with us."

"I talked it over with my wife, and we decided that maybe change in Fraedia starts with us taking people who need help. We don't want to teach our children to just leave people who need help," she mumbled as she soaked the rag with water and touched it to his neck. "Maybe that's part of the reason why Fraedia's the way it is. Nobody helps each other anymore."

Fara frowned. "I thought a lot of Fraedia's problems were political."

"That stuff certainly doesn't help but we can't act like everything is the nobility's fault either, you know?"

Darren bit his lips as the bandage was tied around his neck. Why didn't Adoss ever step in to help Fraedia's citizens? Did his father think it was a loss cause with all of the bandits and slave traders around? Even if the nobility didn't care about the citizens, somebody should have. There was no reason why the Fraedian people had to live in fear for so long, trapped in their own country with little way out.

He had to find a way to help out while he was still in Fraedia. He just needed to figure out how.

* * *

Iniabi didn't plan on going out to the festivals. He didn't mind stopping for the festival because he recognized the need for a break, but he didn't care much for participating in it either. He was sitting in the lobby with Arder, who kept himself busy by polishing his brave sword. Arder was focused on maintaining his sword, so he was only giving one or two word responses whenever Iniabi tried to talk to him. To try and kill time, Iniabi read a couple of short tomes provided by the staff on the tomes, which spoke of a rather brief history on the festivals.

Not that he learned anything new. It just used more words to say what he already learned from his allies. Surely, a nation-wide festival would have some sort of founding story besides a vague description of a dragon protecting Fraedia, but he couldn't find a reason for nobles to shell out some much gold for it. Who was putting that sort of expectation on them?

The thought that maybe Haelin wasn't all that old, considering how its history seemed rather limited in scope, crossed his mind before and it came up again. Perhaps it was still developing to become a continent that had a history to be proud of, like the ones he came across in his travels. The only other guess he had was that there was more history that people knew of, but were reluctant to share. Perhaps it was all the more reason to make sure that Igneous reached Vedia's Serpent – if anybody knew anything, it would definitely be a manakete.

However, he was torn out of his thoughts when Orla came back the inn, holding Charles in her arms. At first, he thought that maybe they drank too much, but then he realized that they couldn't have been out long enough for one of them to come back blackout drunk. Orla didn't say anything, but Iniabi knew that something was wrong. Arder looked up, and judging by the narrowing of his aqua coloured eyes, Iniabi suspected that he came to same conclusion.

He ran upstairs, opening the door to Igneous' room where he knew his tomes would be kept, letting out a sigh of relief when he found that the door was unlocked. He grabbed three dark tomes from the pile of tomes Igneous left around the room without really looking at them. He also spotted one of Caalya's tomes and decided to take it with him, shoving them all away into a bag that Igneous had hanging off his bed. It was originally Iniabi's anyway, something he grabbed for himself shortly after arriving at the temple. He used it to carry his tomes when he was travelling since he wasn't using his sword as much.

Arder was waiting for him at the bottom, his brave sword already in hand, though his polish and rag were suddenly out of sight. They didn't need to speak to each other – they both had enough battle experience to not only understand what sort of trouble they may be in for, but how they should approach that trouble as well. Regardless, Iniabi could trust Arder to have his back, and he wouldn't dare to leave somebody high and dry.

After leaving the inn and going into the town, it didn't take Iniabi and Arder long to see signs of battle in the streets. There were overturned carts, pots of plants which were knocked over and the plants and soil had spilled out onto the streets, and there was the occasional smear of blood either on the walls of buildings or on the streets. The streets were also rather empty, which didn't necessarily surprise Iniabi, but he was still impressed by how fast civilians and the like were able to clear out, even if it was a little troubling.

"Ah, more friends of the oracle," somebody said. The voice came from above, so they both looked up to find a dark flier above them. The rider was a man with black hair and equally dark armour, which was accented with icy blue. It was all they could see from their position. "I suppose you wouldn't know where the oracle happens to be, do you? Otherwise, you're nothing but a waste of air."

"What do you want with Igneous?" Iniabi shouted, fishing out one of his tome while keeping his eyes on the dark flier. He had to feel the spine of the tomes and thickness of the tomes to figure out which tomes he actually did grab in his rush, and he was relieved to find that he did bring Fenrir.

The man smirked. "I honestly don't know what my queen has in mind for him. However, if my queen wants him for any reason, then I will fetch him for her."

Arder frowned. "Your Queen hasn't said anything about what she plans to do and you still do everything she says?"

"You think that she doesn't trust us?" he asked, while raising his sword. Iniabi saw green energy gather, and both he and Arder barely managed to avoid a wind spell aimed at them when he finally did swing his sword. It was the first time he saw a sword using wind magic – he was used to Levin swords using thunder magic. "She chose us, regardless of our blood and our backgrounds! She knew what we are capable of and she chose us based on merit alone! She has done nothing but trust us, so we trust her!"

"Yes, what Weinstrad said!" another voice came from behind. Arder spun around so Iniabi focused on Weinstrad, summoning his Fenrir spell and aiming it at the dark flier. He dodged, then steered his pegasus down, swooping over their heads. Iniabi was struck in the arm by Weinstrad's sword, cutting his jacket's sleeve and biting into his arm. He hissed in pain, then steeled his resolve and forced himself to ignore the pain.

When Weinstrad was above them all once again, he looked down on the newcomer, a growl gracing his features. "Azalea, dear, you should be looking for the oracle. Are you letting Daphne's nose go to waste?"

"Daphne has a hard timing picking up the oracle's scent since the entire town is covered in flowers. She even sniffed around the same site that the oracle's ursurine was sniffing around but his trail died pretty quickly. I vote we get rid of the interference, then we have the whole town to ourselves!" she said as the ursurine jumped back to let the archer on top of her get another shot at Arder. Arder sidestepped, preventing the arrow from going into his arm but it still grazed him, with the arrow landing behind him. He launched himself forward again, slashing his sword against the ursurine's arm while twisting himself to avoid her teeth.

Weinstrad growled. The sword went away to his pegasus' side and he opened a tome. Iniabi switched Fenrir out for something quicker to cast, pulling out his Ruin tome instead. He began casting, hoping that he could finish his spell before Weinstrad could finish his. Iniabi was struck with a Rexcalibur spell that tore into his clothing, sending chills up his body. While he felt the cold winds in his bones, there was only some stinging, though dull in comparison to the gash he had in his arm. Iniabi shook it off, just as Weinstrad more or less shrugged his off Ruin spell, though his pegasus was more affected, thrashing its front legs and flapping its wings erratically. Weinstrad did his best to guide to a rooftop, giving his mount a mount to recover.

Iniabi raised his hand, preparing to cast Ruin again while Weinstrad was busy with his mount when Arder suddenly tackled him to the ground, an arrow whizzing over his head. His tomb tumbled to the ground, landing far away from him and face down. Arder jumped to his feet first, then helped Iniabi up.

Before they could catch their breath, Weinstrad cast another spell, forcing them dart out of the way, putting him in the way for another arrow to fly over his shoulder. Instead of stumbling for the fallen tomb, he went for the Flux tomb in his bag. It was basic, but his magic was more than strong enough to make up for the inherent difference in strength that existed between tomes. He cast the spell, just as the ursurine was charging towards him. She couldn't change her direction in time and hit the spell with full force, knocking her partner off of her back as she landed on her side.

Just as he was preparing to summon another spell, Alissa and Cyrus popped out from the corner. Cyrus reacted quickly, pulling the fallen archer off of her feet just as she was getting up and hugging her against his chest, keeping her arms glued to her side. She kicked and screamed but Cyrus kept her in the tight bear hug.

The ursurine switched to her human form, charging for Cyrus with a fist raised. Alissa jumped between Cyrus and Daphne with a knife raised, stabbing Daphne as her fist flew over Alissa's head and striking air. Daphne ignored the initial stabbing, then fell to her knees when Alissa did something to the knife prior to pulling it out. Perhaps she twisted it. Regardless of what Alissa did to her, it shouldn't have been enough to take down an ursurine, at least, that was what Iniabi figured. He had better things to do then wonder about it though.

That only left Weinstrad then. Iniabi's magic didn't seem to affect Weinstrad much at all, and even his pegasus seemed fine after it got a moment to recover. Arder was stuck dodging all of Weinstrad's attacks and while he seemed to be trying to get to one of the houses, perhaps with the hopes of reaching the roof, he was unsuccessful. Thankfully, Arder was quick enough on his feet that only injury he received was the cut he got earlier when the arrow graze him and luckily, it wasn't on his sword arm.

"Come down here and fight me!" Arder shouted, hefting his sword to rest on his shoulders. "Isn't it boring like this? Isn't it more exciting when we can exchange blows?"

"Why would I do that? You can't reach me up here and I can do anything I want from here. I don't care about honour or a fair fight, so I would rather be up here where I have the advantage."

"Yeah, I figured you would say something like that," Arder said with a sigh. "A real pity that you're stuck fighting me then. Don't you have anything better to do... like looking for Igneous? Your bear and Azalea can't do it. For all we know, Igneous could be long gone and you wouldn't know, since you were too busy throwing spells at me and missing." Arder made a point of looking up and smirking, even flicking his sword so that whatever blood covered it split to the ground as well.

Weisntrad scowled, before straightening his back. His scowl melted into a frown. "How about a temporary seize fire? The first one to find the oracle wins and the other party cannot interfere for two days, in which case anything goes once those two days are up. For some reason, if either party fails to find the oracle before day breaks, then the two day grace period will still go into effect. How about it?"

"Arder, is this a good idea?" Iniabi whispered. Surely, they could regroup and just take the man down. Will's arrows could reach and they also three fliers on their team now, so between himself, Will, and the fliers, Weinstrad would probably be forced to retreat. He couldn't dodge all of them. Wasn't that better than making a potentially risky deal?

"We need to look for Igneous too and we don't know what condition the rest of us are in. I know we have some new fliers now but wouldn't we have seen them if they were nearby? At least with this, we get a chance to lick our wounds, even if Zahan gets the same chance."

"Can we trust Zahan to just leave us alone though?" Alissa added, walking up to them while spinning her knife in her hand, spraying droplets of blood. Cyrus was on the other side of her, though he was careful to avoid the blood that came of the end of his friend's knife. The ursurine was on the ground still, this time on her side. Cyrus apparently let Azalea go, but she wasn't causing any trouble, sticking to Daphne's side. "He just said he gives no shit about honour."

Iniabi nodded. She had a fair point. "Zahan hasn't given us a reason to trust their word on this. For all we know, they'll just attack us as soon as they get the chance."

"He needs time to regroup and heal too," Arder mumbled. "If he's suggesting that we do this regardless of who finds Igneous or even if he isn't found, then he probably needs it too. He could attack us but he may be on his own if he does."

"What is it going to be?" Weinstrad asked with a yawn.

"A deal is a deal," Arder answered, looking up. "If you betray us though, you will be sorry."

"Oh, I'm so scared!" Weinstrad said with a laugh. "But that goes for you too, brat. We have more generals you haven't seen yet, and one of them must be getting bored right about now. Remember – two days!" He took off, saying nothing more.

"Let's go inform everybody else, then," Arder said simply.

"Alright, but you're the one doing it," Cyrus mumbled with a frown. "I'm a little too drunk to deal with Igneous' pissed off guardians."

Iniabi spun around on his feet, turning to Cyrus. "Where have you two been anyway?"

"The tavern's nearby," he said with a shrug. "I would rather pay for ale then have to attend the festival to get some for free."

"We could hear the battle outside once the bar fight was over," Alissa added on.

"Hah, I started a bar fight when I met Igneous and that dancer girl too!"

"That's not surprising, you get into a fight almost every time you go into a tavern, and you go often," Alissa huffed, playfully punching Cyrus in the arm.

Cyrus laughed while Arder shook his head. "We should get going," Arder mumbled. "We have to find Igneous before they do."

* * *

"I still can't believe you agreed to something like that, Arder!" Saikur particularly shouted, panting deeply. Arder could understand Saikur's frustrations, expected it even. It was why he could sit calmly, keeping his injured arm out so that Mira could wrap it. She had a gentle touch, and he was glad that there was somebody who could treat wounds without using magic. It gave Elena time to spend with people who needed her more.

Still, Mira's hands were trembling. Arder was sure that if Saikur kept his emotions under wraps, then she could completely focus on her task.

"If they found him, they would have had two days to get away with him!"

"But it's not like they're going to kill him. It's clear that they want Darren dead, but for some reason, they want Igneous alive. Besides, it's not like I made the deal and then didn't look for him. Most of us were up until sunset looking for him."

The only ones who didn't go to look for him were the ones who found asleep, Gerben because he was still unconscious, and Reina and Mira, who stayed inside the inn to wrap their minor wounds before while Elena tended to the more serious wounds. That was where he was, sitting in the lobby, as they slowly took cover the inn as an impromptu base. At least the staff didn't seem to care about it, occasionally passing out cups of water and snacks.

Saikur was about to say something when Garath suddenly cut him off. He was sitting down, resting one of his legs on another chair. "Saikur, think about who you are actually angry with. Igneous isn't here but none of us took him, so shouting at us doesn't help anybody." He didn't often seem to start a conversation, so he had Arder's and Saikur's attention. Saikur was still glaring, grinding his teeth, but Garath's words stopped him in his tracks.

"It's not ideal, but we do need this time. I've never seen Gerben in such bad shape before, and I have no idea how long it will take for him to even be on his feet again," Leigh said with a sigh. He was pacing, his armour stripped down. Arder didn't watch him though, he was sure he would become dizzy. "I'd ask Orla, but she fell asleep as soon as she brought him in."

A bell at the door rung, letting them now that somebody was coming into the inn. He wasn't surprised to see that it was somebody from their group. Amaryllis walked inside, pulling the hood off of her head with Zahreen following her inside. "I did my own search around town, but I haven't found anything anybody haven't already found. I have an idea of what happened though, and where we can find him," she announced, shaking her head to let her long, silver hair fall over her shoulders.

"You don't think slave traders had something to do with this, do you?" Mira asked with a frown. It was the first time she spoken in a while, ever since Saikur came back.

"I almost certain," Amaryllis said with a shrug. Mira looked down, focusing all of her attention on tying off his bandages. The bandages covered Arder's arm from his just below to his shoulder down to his elbow, ending just above the joint. He yawned, leaning back in the chair. Arder was used to staying up late since he was constantly on patrol, but he was used to getting at least a little bit of sleep before or after the patrol. He was awake for far too long. He envied those who were sleeping through a battle. "I don't think he would just run off and not come back unless he was lost. We haven't found him, and Zahan left empty handed."

"It makes sense with what I saw too." Zahreen shrugged.

"...What did you see?" Saikur asked, his voice low. It sounded like he was trying to calm down but he was failing miserably.

"I was probably the last one who saw him," Zahreen answered, his metallic fingers tapping against his metallic arms. "Tahno came to show me that he got the kid to drink some wine, we laughed, he got all pissy and he walked away. Tahno was on the ground just a couple of minutes later and then we were attacked. For both parties to miss him in a small time frame, it was probably a third party."

"Amaryllis, you said something about knowing where you could find him," Arder mumbled before Saikur got a chance to flip out even more.

She nodded. "If he was taken by slave traders, then they will probably take him to Valburn. Since it's the biggest city, most of the big auctions take place there. There's no way somebody took him without he was going to be worth a lot."

"So what are the chances we can beat the auction?" Leigh asked.

"Probably not likely. Unless you want to send Caalya and that new woman out right away, then we won't beat the slave traders to Valburn. If he does get sold though, I know a guy in Valburn. He's great at collecting dirt on nobles and otherwise wealthy people, so we often conduct... business together," she answered with a smirk. "He owes me a favour anyway."

"We'll set off when Gerben begins to recover from his injuries then. By the time he begins to recover, the rest of the injured should be well on their way as well."

"But Leigh, what if Igneous gets sold and something happened to him in that house?" Arder wondered if the fact that Igneous had wine went over Saikur's head, or if really was making an honest effort to suppress his emotions.

"We'll have to help him work through it if it comes to that. I want to go after Igneous as much as you do, Saikur, but the rest of our group needs to heal as well or it will just take them longer to recuperate. If it was one or two people, it would be fine, we could cart them along, but that's not the case," Leigh mumbled, walking around to pat Saikur on the shoulder.

Arder decided that he would rather sleep than watch Saikur whine and sulk now that they something resembling a plan. He stood up and walked up to his room, noticing that Iniabi's door was open while he was on the way to his own room. He peeked inside. Iniabi was sitting on his bed, wearing only a tan coloured shirt with short sleeves and pants of a similar colour, though both pieces were torn in several places. His boots were off, placed at the side of his bed. Arder could see the shallow cuts travelling down his arms, which he left unwrapped for the most part, but he did have some bandages wrapped around his arm. Arder recalled Weinstrad slicing into his arm with a sword, though if Iniabi only needed bandages, then it must not have been that deep.

He was holding his coat in his hands, taking great care to sew up the tears. He was so focused on his task that he didn't seem to notice that Arder was hovering in his door frame. Arder said nothing and just left him to it, musing how it was the first time he really saw Iniabi without the oversized coat on.

* * *

It took the full two days of break from Zahan for Gerben to feel well enough to travel, but even then, he was sitting in one of the wagons which that had to be emptied to fit him. At least he managed to get into the wagon on his own. Since the other wagon couldn't carry everything though, the Adossian horses and Orla had to carry some of the supplies. The other unusual part of the trip came in the form of a blonde woman named Themis.

Arder wasn't quite sure why she wanted to tag along so badly and why Gerben was so set on her coming along as well. Gerben wouldn't let them leave without her, only saying that he and Igneous let her come with them. Arder didn't quite mind having somebody around who couldn't fight, that was Reina's case and he had no issue with her, but it still made him curious. What did Themis have to gain from travelling with them? How did the benefits outweigh the dangers?

On the second day of marching, they ran into a travelling merchant, who carried his wares in a horse-drawn wagon. He had his shop set up out of his wagon, along with a tent, so he must have decided to settle for the night early. He had three bodyguards with him, one of them who Zahreen seemed to know fairly well since the two of them began chatting while the rest of the team investigated the wares. There were a lot of small trinkets that Arder wasn't really interested in, just a bunch of gold stuff that he was sure Igneous would love to wear. He did however, decide to pick up some more polish for his sword along with a whetting stone with his own personal gold. He couldn't have too many things to help him maintain his swords.

He didn't think anything with amiss until he spotted Saikur scrutinizing the golden jewellery, checking them more closer than he was sure an expert would.

"These were Igneous'!" Saikur exclaimed. "Look, Leigh, you got these bracelets for him when he turned fourteen! And he always wears this necklace..."

"He got that from the king when he became old enough to interact with the public. He got it shortly after he turned ten... sir, where did you get these?"

"Just from a scruffy looking gang," the merchant answered with a shrug. He looked like a kind man too, a little full in the face and in the belly, and rosy cheeks. "I'm not losing a profit on them though." Arder wasn't surprised by the words that came out of his mouth, but he had a face that seemed incapable of saying those words.

Arder expected Saikur to continue with the small tantrum he had back in the inn, but he actually looked like somebody punched him the gut.

"How much for all of the gold jewellery then?"

"I was hoping to get about ten thousand for them. They are top quality and made of pure gold. Some of them even have precious gems! It was a rare find."

"I'm sure you would cut a discount for me, though?" Themis asked, walking up the wagon. Her steps were exaggerated slightly, just enough to make the circular discs on her belt jingle more than usual. The man's face light up when he saw her, though he noticed that Elena also seemed to pay a lot of attention to her as well. However, she seemed rather suspicious of Themis instead of entranced.

"Themis! Just the lady I was looking for! I got a couple of things I need your opinion on! Oh, and did you bring your cards?"

Themis nodded, giving Arder a brief, a strange sideways glance before she followed him inside his tent. "What was that all about?" Saikur asked, his eyes focused on the tent while still holding the bracelets in his hands.

"Just let her do what she needs to do," Arder mumbled. He wasn't sure he understood entirely, but she wanted to say something to him with that glance. He had a feeling that he could trust her, though he also knew that none of that was going to comfort Saikur in anyway. He leaned against the wagon, his arms crossed as he let himself relax. He might as well, he decided, since he had no long how long Themis was going to be. "Anyway, how much gold do we have to spend? I doubt whatever discount she could get us is going to make it all for free."

"Truthfully, we could afford the original asking price, but that would essentially be a person that we can't hire as a mercenary," Leigh mumbled. "Ideally, we won't spend quite that much... but a lot of this is precious to him. They were gifts from the people in the temple and his guardians. I'll do whatever it takes to get every piece back for him."

It didn't take too long after Leigh's proclamation that Themis did return with a new price that Leigh was quick to accept – six thousand. It was impressive really, what some cards and a woman who knew the right words could do. The only one who wasn't ecstatic about the who exchange was Elena, who decided to only speak once the merchant was behind hem.

"Did you lie to him?" she asked suddenly. She slowed herself down to keep pace with Themis, but she did nothing to control the volume of her voice. Arder sighed. It was a conversation that could have, and should have, stayed private. "Are you one of those fake fortune tellers who had to pick up business in Fraedia?"

To her credit, she didn't look fazed. She kept a coy smile on her face, tapping her cheek with her finger. "I'm nothing like that. Our trade may look similar, but you see... I'm not mad at Igneous. I don't even charge for my advice. I genuinely like to talk people and help them through their problems."

"Then who are you really? Why are travelling with us?"

"I've already told you I am. My name is Themis and I like to give people advice. Sometimes, people like it when I use the cards. That's all. We got his trinkets back, so we should continue to Valburn, should we not?"

"Yes, we're wasting time here," Arder said with a nod. He didn't feel like he needed to explain why.

* * *

 _It's been a while! This chapter is not only slightly longer than usual but I also made progress on the next two chapters!_


End file.
